Curses Upon Curses
by Janika
Summary: What happens when someone from another world with a curse she doesn't want to admit meets our favorite winged thief? Not to mention there's a flying lizard after her! Let's just say it's another sappy romance fic with a little excitement too. DarkXOC
1. Set In Motion

**Thanks to Dantheman7777, I have now become a hopeless DNAngel fan. It's all his fault. Oh yeah, and this is based just after the destruction of the Second Hand of Time (there were approximately 2 months between the time of its demise and the end of the series that are unaccounted for, so bear w/ me).**

**Chapter 1: Set in Motion**

The darkness meant nothing to her.

There had been no obstacles so far to deter her from her goal, and she had never failed before. The corridor narrowed and ended abruptly, but rubbing the amulet on her wrist revealed hidden stairs invisible to the unaided eye. She dashed up the steps circling the inside of the tower, one hand grasping an ancient weapon only known as the _andora_.

It resembled a steel staff, but at the very top a twin pair of crescent blades angled up. Runes carved into the shaft of the weapon described a story that had never been told and would never be told thanks to the forgetfulness of mankind. There were secrets about this creation which had not been known since the time of its forging centuries ago. It was one of the last relics from a past beyond recollection.

A door loomed ahead, pale blue light issuing from its opening like cold starlight. The girl came up short and pressed her back against the wall. Silence and secrecy had been her goal this time rather than a brash frontal assault. Wizards were subtler in their crafts than barbarians and tended to have rather nasty traps laid out for meddlers. Luckily there didn't seem to be any so far. Of course he was a weather-wizard, so little would be here that did not have something to do with the Elements.

The black-haired girl edged closer, squinting to see into the softly lit interior of the room. It appeared to be empty. She never trusted appearances. Peering through, she could not see her target, nor its protector. This was his abode and he was missing. Something was wrong. Reaching forward, her hand came up against a solid barrier where there should have been empty space.

"Lady Imbri, I believe," came a sneering voice above her.

Cursing her foolishness to fall for an illusion, the intruder grasped her weapon and glared upward where her enemy had been watching her since she'd mounted the tower's winding stair. He was shrouded in a darkness that her enhanced sight could not penetrate.

"Keep your comments to yourself and hand over the jewel you stole from Lord Todur."

"I see no reason why I should. You'd have done better to ignore his summons. Keep to your monster-slaying, Knightess. Leave now and I will not kill you."

"Did you really think it would be that easy to get rid of me?" She grinned suddenly, sensing rather than seeing a shadow detach itself from the ceiling and descend toward her. She took on a defensive stance, _andora _held ready. "Shall we battle?"

He didn't bother to answer. The wizard stood on nothing in the center of the tower and golden sparks flared as he invoked his magic. At that same moment Imbri brought the _andora_ up and twirled it, spinning faster and faster until it appeared to be a steel shield before her body. The fire arcing toward her glanced off harmlessly. The wizard in his deep gray cloak seemed astonished for a second and then with a wave of his hand a sheet of ice slammed into her.

Imbri tried to fend it off, but the frost numbed her hands and slowed the spinning staff. When it almost slipped from her fingers she abandoned that defense entirely and leaped wildly to avoid the remainder of the wizard's freezing attack. She flipped once in midair and landed with hardly a sound on the opposite side of the tower; an impossible feat for any but a knightess.

Now quite a bit lower than she'd been a moment before, she used her new position to get beneath the wizard's defenses before he could recover. A pair of small daggers hidden inside her sleeves flew out and struck him. One pierced his right arm and he jerked so quickly that the second impaled him in the throat.

His eyes bulged and his mouth gaped open in shock as dark blood dripped onto his chest. A shimmering light encompassed his body and he dropped, no longer supported by his magic. He landed on the stone floor far below with a sickening crunch.

Imbri gasped as she watched him fall. She'd been aiming for his other arm so that he could not use magic against her by waving his hands.

The death of a weather-wizard was on her head!

Retrieving the jewel was of no importance now. Lord Todur would raise her head on a spike if she didn't flee to her sovereign. Once she explained the situation—no. The word "accident" was not one associated with knightesses. Unless she performed some awe-inspiring feat, like defending the capital city from a raging beast in full view of the public, her life was forfeit.

A deafening roar split the ominous silence that had fallen with the death of the wizard. A window near the ceiling cracked and widened as something forced its way through. A scaled head became visible, and Imbri realized she was staring at the wizard's Familiar: a black wyvern.

At least now she had the raging beast.

The large, two-legged dragon bugled again and breathed a stream of licking flames straight down at the human that had stolen the life of its master. Imbri leaped once more to avoid the blazing heat, but she noticed that a warm glow had appeared inside the white crystal around her wrist. Strange things often happened after the death of a wizard; some favorable, some not so much, but all bizarre.

The amulet left her mind as the wyvern tore apart the tower wall. Its wings were too large to extend inside, and so they folded flat against its back as it slithered through the hole, gripping broken stone and steps with its talons. A third thunderous bellow shook the tower and made Imbri's ears ring as the horrifying cry echoed all around her.

She jumped five feet straight up at the exact moment that the wyvern buried its jaws in the spot she'd been standing. While it spat out stone instead of human bones, the knightess landed on its head just behind the horns. Furious, it shook and writhed and lashed trying to dislodge the unwanted passenger, but Imbri clung too tightly.

Suddenly a deep blue mist surrounded her stemming from the amulet. There came a silence that drew in all sound so that even as she cried out there was nothing to hear, and then the tower turned into a night sky so brilliant that she could hardly stand to look at it, and yet she could not close her eyes.

Then all the stars were gone and only darkness remained.

(X)

Daisuke lay in bed, finally drifting off after hours of restless tossing and turning. All the events of the past year were beginning to pile up on him. The discovery of Dark on his fourteenth birthday had only been the beginning of a nightmare. A genetic curse attaching him to the legendary Phantom Thief was not the sort of present he'd been looking forward to. Occasionally the four hundred year-old spirit would take over and steal magical artifacts to seal away their power and keep them from harming people.

But at least his appearance changed so that Daisuke himself wasn't blamed for the thefts. Instead of a short kid with red, spiky hair, his body transformed into that of approximately a 17-year-old with violet hair. He was thankful there was such a difference in their heights and personalities too or else people might get suspici—

Hold it! How could he be _glad_ that his other self was a lecher that every girl in town considered a hunk?! Well, all except Daisuke's girlfriend, but that was another story entirely. Riku had never been attracted to the thief and despised him with a passion that was almost frightening.

His thoughts began to slide into each other without meaning and he slipped into the beginnings of sleep. Abruptly out of nowhere came a jolt that made every muscle in his body tense. He snapped fully awake.

Dark had woken as well. Though he was rarely aware unless there was something to steal, (or when he wanted to eavesdrop on Daisuke's daily life...which usually wound up being embarrassing) whenever he felt magic at work the Thief became alert.

He pulled himself out of the bunk and opened the door to the balcony. There was a sense of wind and darkness mixed with death somewhere out there. Daisuke couldn't help cringing back as he felt deep hatred soaked with pain emanating from the south.

"Kyu?" came a sound at his feet. A white rabbit looked up at him, his pink eyes afraid and pleading.

"I don't like it either, Wiz, but I think we'll have to go. I'm sure Dark can handle it," he reassured his animal friend. Heat washed over him as the Phantom Thief took control of his body. Wiz sat up happily, ears flopping.

"Time to go flying," the man said, turning his eyes southward.

In response to the words, Wiz glowed momentarily before transforming into a pair of black wings that fused to Dark's back. Seconds later he was winging his way across the city following the source of magical turmoil. Something strange was at work.

The origin of the power came from a belltower at the southern edge of town. Scouting the area slowly from above, he observed nothing out of the ordinary. All was quiet. Even the aura of magic was fading, including the intense feelings of hatred.

Then abruptly the bell clanged wildly as something rammed into it! An enraged bugle split the night silence wide open along with the roof of the belltower. Emotions of loathing and confusion surged out, assaulting him so strongly that Dark had to fight to get closer.

A creature with scales like obsidian clawed its way out, flinging debris everywhere with its talons and tail. Perched atop the broken tower, it spread its leathery wings and pitched its snaky head side to side. A small humanoid figure was thrown off, and as it arced through the air he swooped down impulsively.

Catching a girl in his arms, he flared his wings to cease the dive, which wasn't easy because she was _heavy!_ She appeared dizzy, but that was understandable.

_Dark, out of curiosity why do you always seem to catch girls like that?_ Daisuke wondered. _If she'd been a guy I'm pretty sure you'd be holding her differently._

_You bet I would!_ Dark retorted silently._ Now quit distracting me. Can't you see I'm a little __occupied__ here?_

A staff of some sort dropped from the rescued girl's hand and she reached futilely after it with a cry. "No! My _andora!_ Go back for it!"

"Not now!" the Phantom Thief told her as he realized the flying reptile had noticed him.

With the loss of the staff he found his load a lot lighter and could maneuver much more easily. Gaining altitude, the man swerved side to side around buildings to confuse the creature on his tail. A short jet of flame licked his feathers, scorching some of the pinions and almost causing him to lose control. His enemy was obviously better prepared for aerial combat than himself.

Wind seared across his face like tiny claws as Dark was forced into a corkscrew dive. Managing to come out of it, he tried to draw out a feather to perform magic, but couldn't. At the speed he was going, if he used magic with one hand he might lose the girl. Of course that was liable to happen anyway since she was struggling so much.

"I have to get it! Let me go, you fool! I _need_ it!" she shrieked. Heedless of the danger, she pushed at him and swung her legs, a kick connecting with his left wing. It nearly made him crash into a building he swerved close to in order to evade another burst of fire.

Dark's nerves were growing a little thin. "Unless you want me to drop you right _here_ and let your neck get broken, I suggest you quit moving around. _Got it?_"

"I'm not going to die! Just let me go, you mindless idiot! I can take care of myse—"

He managed to get his hand on the feather and it glowed momentarily while she was still speaking. The noisy thrashing stopped. He let his mouth quirk up in a faint smile as he found it much simpler to fly carrying a limp body.

**Read and review, peoples. Tell me what it needs (besides plot, that is; we'll get there eventually).**


	2. Into Thin Air

**As a rule I like to keep readers guessing, but sometimes that's just no fun and I have to drop all kind of hints. This isn't one of those times. You'll just have to read as I **_**slooooowly**_** update. Suckers!**

**Chapter 2: Into Thin Air**

The winged reptile swooped after him, bloodlust glinting in its silver eyes. It bellowed again, showing shark-like teeth as it prepared another burning blast. It came in a wrathful inferno that did not miss this time.

With one hand finally free, the Thief created a barrier against the fiery assault just in time. Gritting his teeth against the heat, he waved his black feather and reflected the attack back at the wyvern. The creature roared with anger as the flames returned to him, but his scales were tough enough to withstand fire.

It tried to catch him in its claws, but even with a burden Dark was too quick for it. He dove down among a cluster of trees in a park where it couldn't reach him. When it passed over he cast out a bolt of black energy that struck its head. It squealed suddenly, anger and frustration turning to surprise and dismay.

The creature's wings went rigid and it retreated without warning. Flapping hard, it flew into the sky with more speed than the Thief would have thought possible. Weighted down as he was and also harboring burnt feathers, he could do nothing but watch.

But even as Dark's eyes followed it, the winged reptile seemed to melt into the night. Starlight and the black in between appeared to fold, blending and enveloping it so seamlessly that the dragon all but disappeared while he stared. It was so thorough a spell that that even an incarnation of darkness such as himself couldn't distinguish it.

Angry at letting a monster escape but knowing he could do nothing while carrying the unconscious girl, he turned back toward the town.

Lights were on all over the area, everyone wakened by the sounds of their battle. Shrieking sirens pierced the once-serene night as police and ambulances approached from every direction. Then he caught sight of the belltower.

The entire roof was gone, chunks of it strewn all over the surrounding area. From above, Dark saw the extent of the damage and could do nothing but stare at it, stunned. Pieces of stone had been thrown into the nearby buildings by the raging wyvern when it had thrashed and flailed to escape. He could also see blackened areas sending up columns of smoke where the creature's deadly breath had touched earth, and a fire had started in the top floor of one apartment complex.

Worst of all to the angel was that, with so much damage, it was impossible that all the innocent people living nearby were unharmed. As Dark surveyed the police and hospital personnel rushing into homes, he could only hope none of the injuries were too serious.

A night wind caught him and blew toward the sea slowly as though it had a destination in mind. He caught the scent of singed feathers at last and wondered if Wiz was all right. The rabbit couldn't complain in this form, but later he sure would.

_What are we going to do with her?_ Daisuke interrupted his other half's thoughts. _We can't take her to my home. We don't even know if she can be trusted._

The winged man had already considered it. "We'll have to keep her at a distance but not too far away. She knows something about that creature I fought with and I want to keep tabs on her."

_Uh oh… What are you thinking, Dark? I can tell you're about to say something I'm not going to be thrilled about._

"I think it's about time I called in a favor with your former crush."

_You've _got_ to be kidding me!_

(X)

Riku woke as she heard voices coming from the next room. Her bedside clock blinked 3:22. She listened to the murmurs for a moment, trying to figure out who her twin would be talking to so late. It hit her and she instantly sat up in bed, fully awake.

Dark had paid Risa visits in the past and the dumb girl had even gone looking for him a few times. Since neither had occurred lately, Riku had hoped whatever was between them had ended. Thankfully her sister had started looking at normal guys again instead of criminals, but every addict slipped back into their old habits.

Throwing open the door, she stormed into the room shouting, "_What_ _is he doing here?_"

Dark wasn't there.

Risa stood beside the open window supporting a limp girl who looked about their age. It appeared she had fainted.

"Cou—could you help me, sis?" Risa gasped in her high-pitched voice, struggling to hold up the stranger. "She's not as light as she looks. Whatever she's wearing weighs a ton!"

Riku helped her carry the girl to the bed and wrinkled her nose. "Why does it smell like burnt feathers in here?"

Despite being twins, the two girls could hardly be more different. Risa's interests were what some would describe as 'beauty-oriented.' There couldn't be a more girly person in Paris. She always wore her hair long and had dyed it long ago to be a simple chestnut brown. The only thing to prove she had any character was the strange fact that she continually risked her life, either on purpose or by accident, associating with _certain _men. Even though she was the same age as her sister, people always associated her with being younger. Perhaps because Riku always seemed to have to take care of her.

Riku's hair had always been trimmed right below her ears and was auburn, a lighter shade than her twin's. She was more aptly known as a tomboy at school since she eagerly participated in sports and had a temper that made just about every boy avoid her. Well, except for Daisuke. He'd been enamored with Risa for quite a long while before he realized Riku and he shared more interests and eventually he transferred his affections. Despite her anger sometimes and the gruff way she reacted to certain people, there was something distinctly feminine about her.

"Phew! That was really tough." Wiping the back of her hand across her forehead, Risa collapsed in the chair at her desk. "Mr. Dark looked like he was fighting."

"So he _did _dump her here! What a jerk! Who is she anyway?" she asked, gesturing to the prone figure.

"I don't know. He said she was in trouble and he couldn't take care of her. I told him that she could stay here with us. It's no problem."

"But you don't even know who she is!"

"So?"

"_So?_ You'd do anything 'Mr. Dark' asked. He's _all _you ever think about."

Risa waved her hand dismissively, not even phased by her sister's jab. "Don't worry. He's not the reason I'm doing this. As a matter of fact, I've come to terms with my relationship with him and I think it's best if we do keep apart."

"Oh yeah, I forgot." Riku paused dramatically. "You're beginning to like _Satoshi __Hiwatari_."

The younger twin's face reddened, revealing the truth. "Am not!"

"You'd better be careful what you say or else your nose might start growing. But honestly, I just can't understand you. First you fall for a burglar, _then _you fall for someone who changed into a guy just like him who tried to kill us _both!_ What is it with you and all the guys you crush on?"

"Guys I crush on?!"

Neither of them could forget the time the blue-haired boy in their class had changed form, becoming a man with white wings and a cruelty about him that was so unlike their friend. The man, Krad, had gone livid with rage when he set eyes on them and if Dark hadn't been there, the twins probably wouldn't have lived. Riku refused to admit that last part, though.

But it made her wonder if Satoshi changed into Krad, was it possible someone normal also changed into Dark? If so, then it was unlikely she knew the guy. She was willing to bet Dark's other form was an egotistical jerk too.

Risa put her hands on her hips and tried to take back control of the conversation. "Forget that! I'm not doing this because of Mr. Dark anyway. This girl needs our help."

The elder sister let out a deep sigh. "I suppose there's nothing we can really do about it until she wakes up, so we're kinda stuck with her. Look, she can have my bed. I'll sleep on the couch in the corner."

The brown-haired twin looked down at the unconscious girl. "She's dressed really funny. You think it's some kind of armor? Looks a little like the stuff in my history book."

"How should I be able to tell? _You're_ the expert on clothes."

Riku tugged at one of the strings lacing up the side, but it only tightened. She didn't want to strangle their 'guest' by accident.

"Well, I don't know how to undo any of these straps. There's too many and they're all tied in weird knots. She'll just have to sleep like that. I hope she's comfortable in it."

(X)

The moon began to set while Daisuke and Dark soared away from the Haradas' home. There had been no flare of magic since the winged beast vanished, but it was best to be safe. He stayed low just above the buildings, keeping one eye always on the sky.

Daisuke prodded his other half as they flew. _She was kinda pretty. Who do you think she is?_

"A pain in the neck, that's who! She has no common sense, just like Riku: struggling to get away from me even though she could fall to her death."

_Are you sure? She acted like she knew the risks and kept going for that weapon she dropped. You don't think maybe she would have been able to survive the fall, do you?_

"I doubt it. But she obviously knows something about that dragon. I told Risa I'd be back tomorrow, so maybe we'll get some answers then."

_Hey, shouldn't we go try to find her weapon? It really seemed important to her._

"What for? I'm sure she'll go searching for it tomorrow if she really wants it back. I'm beat. Let's go home."

**For some reason I can see Dark saying that. Don't worry. He'll be paying through the nose for it for a little while.**


	3. One Question

**Chapter 3: One Question**

Riku opened her eyes and felt a crick in her neck from the sofa's arm. She stared at the empty bed for half a minute before remembering that it should have someone in it. Sitting bolt upright she looked around but saw nothing to suggest there had been another person in her room.

With a puzzled sigh she slowly walked down the hall to the balcony door and was surprised to find their anonymous guest standing against the railing looking out at the view. Her lengthy black hair was unkempt and the leather armor had been removed down to a shift so that she appeared _somewhat_ normal in the daylight. The girl glanced back at her without concern and then back at the view.

"You have a lovely city. Very different from my own. I've been observing it for quite some time while waiting for you to wake up." The stranger said it all in an airy tone suggesting she was not overly impressed but not uninterested.

She introduced herself haltingly, still unsure about the girl. "Um…hi. I'm Riku and my sister Risa is probably still asleep."

The other finally turned, bowing her head and twisting her hands out into an unusual gesture that looked as though she was offering Riku something. "I am Knightess Imbri at your service. Thank you for sheltering me during the night. I'm unaccustomed to such kindness in my own land and to find it here in such a strange place is a welcome change."

"No problem." She looked at Imbri's peculiar clothing and couldn't help making a face. "Where exactly are you from? I've never seen anyone dressed like you."

"Aeledria. But I'm not even on my own world anymore, so I doubt the name of my country makes sense to you. Your sun is very small, but bright." Imbri turned back to watch it rising above the hills. "Did I by any chance have an amulet on my wrist when I was brought here?"

Riku couldn't recall seeing a bracelet of any kind the night before. "Nothing. I'm sorry."

She watched the girl slowly bring one hand up to touch the neck of her shift as though making sure something was there. "I see. A tower…last night I was in a tower with the wyvern…and the amulet is missing…my _andora_…" She seemed to come back to herself suddenly. "Would it be possible to find a certain place in this large city of yours that was partially demolished during the night?"

"Sure. I'll bet it's on the news. Come on inside." Riku wondered what this girl had been babbling about, but decided it was sometimes better not to ask questions.

Risa joined them in the living room as they turned on the news. Imbri didn't seem awed by the TV, but neither did she appear to understand what she was watching. She merely accepted it.

Riku explained to her in simpler words that supposedly someone had put a bomb in a belltower in the middle of the night. There were also several interviews of people who described seeing someone flying through the air with a flame-thrower. The reporter even questioned a frazzled woman who swore up and down that the devil had risen from the broken belltower with a thunderous roar.

After watching for a while Imbri asked, "Can you take me to that place?"

"Well, yeah I guess so since there's no school today. But why?"

"I lost my weapon when someone came between myself and my enemy. He cast an enchantment over me before I could kill the beast."

The elder twin's expression hardened. "_That_ would be Dark. He's some kind of kleptomaniac. All he ever does is steal precious artifacts. I wouldn't be surprised if he decided to keep your weapon, especially if it's valuable."

"Mr. Dark wouldn't do that!" Risa's chirping voice declared with absolute certainty. "Riku, you criticize him every chance you get."

"Only because he deserves it."

"Don't listen to her when she rants about Mr. Dark. She thinks he's nothing but a robber, but there's a reason for everything he does." She looked upward and tapped a finger thoughtfully against her chin. "Oh, and by the way, he said he'd be back at dusk to see you."

"Very well, but I'd like to search for my _andora_ today, if you don't mind. When shall we leave?"

"Imbri, you're not going outside like that!" Risa said. "Not unless you want everyone staring at you. We'll have to start with your hair…clean it, first of all, and chop about six inches off, then I'll bet you'd look great with some highlights!"

Nearly an hour later, the twins left the house with a girl who looked almost nothing like the foreigner that showed up in Risa's bedroom the night before. The jeans and T-shirt she had decided on were less glamorous than the younger twin was willing to accept, but since she couldn't do much about it, Risa politely ignored it. There was only that telltale twitch in her face every so often to reveal her disapproval.

They took a tram to the belltower and observed the carnage there.

"Who would do such a thing?" the girl with shorter hair wondered as she watched a little girl begging her mommy to go back inside their wrecked apartment for her doll.

"Who was Mr. Dark fighting last night? Weren't you there, Imbri? This is where he rescued you, right?"

The knightess had been staring at the belltower since they arrived and turned stiffly as she heard her name spoken. "Yes. He did 'rescue' me here. If he hadn't gotten in my way and ensorcelled me, I would have been able to kill it. Instead he drove it away and now I must wait a fortnight."

"A fort-_what?_" Risa scrunched up her face.

"A fortnight is two weeks."

"You could have just said that. But what did he drive away?"

Imbri's description of what really happened the night before made Risa's imagination soar with aspiring thoughts of adventure, danger, and romance at the same time that it made Riku wonder why insanity always seemed to be associated with the dealings of the Phantom Thief. The younger girl kept asking to hear more stories about fighting monsters and Imbri obliged with a laugh.

Sadly, despite their perseverance, the _andora_ was nowhere to be found. They searched everywhere around the tower, but so many people had been there trying to repair the damage (as well as hundreds of spectators) that it was almost certain one had picked up the ancient weapon.

Imbri grew more disheartened with each passing hour. The twins had long since given up searching, but for the sake of their guest stayed to lend support. She finally conceded the search as the sun began drifting down toward the sea. Dark's promise to return sprang to her mind as she followed the two girls back to their home.

The sky had fallen into a pale golden sheet speckled by wisps of timid pink clouds, then continued to shift and slide into new hues as the sun slipped inevitably downward. The three girls on the balcony waited and watched the world change before their eyes while long minutes passed.

"No matter how many times I see a sunset," Imbri sighed to her companions, "I never see another quite the same."

"Look, the moon is rising," Risa pointed at the serene, near-full disc replacing the fiery orb in the sky.

"There is only one moon here," the knightess remarked with astonishment. The others cast her an incredulous stare. "What's its name?"

"Name?" The younger twin looked inquisitively at her sister. "Does the moon have a name?"

Riku shrugged, not wholly concerned. "I heard someone call it Luna once."

Imbri made a surprised sound in the back of her throat. "That's an old name. _Very_ old. Our three moons once went by old names like that too…but times change and the thoughts of people alter. Much that we had long ago has been lost through idleness." Deep sadness coated her words suddenly.

The ocean swallowed the sun and the sky slowly turned from golden to night blue. At last there came a feathery sound as the long-awaited visitor appeared. Dark drifted down to settle on the edge of the balcony. His wings remained wide while he looked down at the Haradas with a secretive smile.

"Evening, ladies. I see you've been taking good care of her."

Risa inclined her head and smiled. "We'll leave you two alone. I'm sure there are things you need to discuss." She had to force Riku to leave because her sister kept glaring warningly at the Phantom Thief.

"Well…they're polite, aren't they?" he remarked jokingly as the twins disappeared inside. The black-haired girl continued to stare mutely at him. "I take it you've heard about me."

Imbri's cold gaze slid over the visitor. It was the first time she'd gotten a chance to really see him and kept her surprise hidden when she caught sight of his ebony wings. "I have, though I've not decided which opinion I should adopt."

"Good. That gives me a chance to redeem myself."

"Perhaps, or perhaps not. I am Knightess Imbri. You lost my _andora_." He had to admire her tact. "I will give you one question a night until it is returned to me. Only then will I tell you all I know. Phantom Dark, you may ask a single question now."

He raised an eyebrow, not sure if she was serious or just teasing him, but her expression didn't waver. "Alright. What was that beast at the belltower?"

"A wyvern."

He waited for her to say more, but she merely stared at him impassively. "That's _it?_ Two words? What if it attacks the city tonight? How am I going to defeat it if I don't know anything about it?"

"All I shall tell you now is that there is time yet before you need worry about the wyvern returning. Our conversation is over. Goodnight, Phantom Dark." She bowed and turned on her heel, leaving so quickly that he wasn't sure she had truly gone until the door closed behind her.

_Well, I can say one thing for her: she saucy,_ Daisuke commented. _I doubt she'll say anything else even if you chase her down, so we might as well go._

"Yeah, I've met the type." Dark shook his head before taking to the air. "But I can't believe I'm actually letting her get away with this. I _need_ those answers and she wouldn't give me anything!"

_You like her._

"I saved her life and asked a question. Yeah, I'm really falling head-over-heels."

_Hey, she's different—which is something you always seem to admire—__plus__ she's pretty. A dangerous combination. You can't deny it! Just imagine that coal-black hair swaying in the wind around her smooth face and those beautiful blue eyes blinking up at you dependently._

"She has brown eyes, Daisuke."

_**Aha!**__ You just proved my point, _the Tamer said smugly.

"Shut up, kid."

_I don't get the chance to bug you very often. Usually it's the other way around. I like it better this way._

"You would."

_What about that _andora_ you lost? Where are we going to find it?_

"It's bound to turn up sooner or later and then all I have to do is go steal it. As long as 'Knightess Imbri' answers all my questions I can cope. Until then I'll just have to word them very carefully."

He had no idea that she had been peering through a crack in the window, watching him fade into the night. Imbri's fingers stroked the pendant hanging on a chain round her neck, wholly unaware of doing so since her mind was elsewhere.

"He can fly," she whispered without meaning to.

"Of course he can," Riku said behind her. "It would be much easier for the authorities to catch him if he couldn't."

The knightess rose from her crouch and turned, covering her startle by clearing her throat and saying, "It appears I'm trapped here until the wyvern returns."

Risa ventured out into the hallway to join them, bringing along a wave of lilac-scented perfume. Riku ignored her as she pondered the details of Imbri's stay.

"For _two weeks? _What are we going to tell Mr. Tsubouchi? We were out of the house all day, so he probably doesn't even know you're here, but what kind of excuse could we possibly give him? And what about when we're at school? You can't attend without records."

"Don't worry," Risa said, appearing confident. "I know exactly what to say: she's visiting from a different country and a friend asked us if we could help out since she needs a place to stay. Oh, and she also has a hurt ankle, so she can't leave the house."

"It might work," the other twin admitted. "Except for the ankle part, we won't even have to lie. Did you come up with that yourself?"

The sister with longer hair brushed the sarcastic question aside and changed the subject. "What did you and Mr. Dark talk about? He seemed a little agitated."

(X)

The next night when Dark reappeared Imbri immediately said, "Where's my _andora_?"

"I'm still searching," he replied coldly.

"One question, then."

"Fine. How about a longer explanation as to why I don't have to worry about this wyvern?"

She scoffed lightly as though it was common knowledge. "It's in mourning. I killed its master and when you drove it away, you merely postponed the inevitable. I could have slain it that night but your interference cost me my victory. Only after one fortni—in two weeks it will reappear to kill me."

"Where do you think it would go?"

The knightess paused, narrowing her eyes. "If you do not interrupt my 'longer explanation' with more questions than you have been assigned, then I will eventually answer them. Is that understood?"

"Yes," he said through gritted teeth.

"No one has ever been able to find a grieving wyvern. Searching for it is pointless. It could be perched on this rooftop and we would never know it. They have magic running deep in their veins. All eyes and thoughts will be diverted from it. Of course, it's also harmless until the mourning period is over, so there is no danger whatsoever."

He gave her a doubtful look.

"If you are so set on finding it, then look. I shall also inquire after your search tomorrow when you return without my _andora_ again."

Dark sighed, realizing that his new ally was going to be very sarcastic about everything she was willing to tell him. Why did she have to be so annoying and maddening? And yet… His wings half-spread, he paused and stood back to look her up and down.

"Are you married?"

Her face went blank and she swept the long, black bangs out of her eyes. "You have not earned that question. Goodnight, Phantom Dark."

But her gaze lingered on his wings for a brief instant before she returned inside.

The Thief left that night deciding to search more fervently for her lost weapon. Someone had definitely discovered it, but what would they do with it? Where would it be? Well, he knew someone who could find out.

**What do you think? A strange artifact with ancient writing on it, found in the destruction of an old belltower. What would you do w/ it?**


	4. Suspicions

**I ****finally**** updated b/c Dan ****finally**** reviewed. It's about time too! Oh, and my gorgeous little sister also graced me with her thoughts.  
Anyway, we've been introduced to our lovely heroine but we still don't know much about her, hence neither does Dark. This should give everyone a better perspective. Hope it's not too corny! **

**Chapter 4: Suspicions**

The night wind whispered coyly past Imbri's ear. Her slender fingers were slowly tracing the silver wings of the creature on her necklace. There was jealousy in the motion.

"I almost remember… Why do I…?" Her eyes turned downward to the pendant. "Why do his wings touch me so?"

She rubbed its backing where a small blue gem responded to her question. Her mind was spirited away into the past—

"_Why did you kill her?" the child's beseeching gray eyes blinked up at her._

"_What brought you out here investigating a gryphon's nest?" Imbri berated him acidly as she cleaned the foul blood from her_ andora.

_They should have known better than to attack a knightess. At least the female was dead and there would be no more eggs. She would have killed the male too since it would raise the chicks, but the little boy's safety was more important._

_And there he was sniffling over the dead carcass of the blue-fletched creature. "I thought she was going to talk to me. All the stories say that gryphons can talk, and they'll answer questions."_

"_Oh really? And what question were you going to ask this beast?" she demanded._

"_Why can they fly and we can't?"_

_She nearly slapped the child. "__**That**__ is the reason you risked your life by disturbing a pair of gryphons and their clutch?"_

"_Haven't you ever wanted to fly?"_

_The question drew Imbri up short._

"_I thought knightesses loved to fly because of their emblems."_

_Her eyes flickered downward to her necklace. Those words from the mouth of a little boy made her think for the first time in a long while. It had been years since she'd last wondered what it would be like to fly._

_She didn't say another word as she dragged him back to his home. The foolish boy didn't know who he was talking to or what he was talking about. Childish whims were lost to knightesses as everyone knew well._

_But then if he was so wrong…why couldn't she stop thinking about flying?_

Imbri opened her eyes and realized with a slim smile that she was perched in a tree at the other end of the Harada mansion. Well, she'd ended up in worse places than this after using the Memory Crystal. Whenever her mind was away, her body would do anything.

With a hopeful sigh, she returned to the balcony and considered her revived reminiscence. The problem with looking into the past with the Crystal was that any emotions she'd felt long ago came back to her threefold. When before she had felt merely a wistful yearning, it had now changed to an urgent longing to soar high above the world beyond the reach of ordinary mortals.

The sound of rustling feathers descended from the night and Imbri tried to regain her composure for her interview with Phantom Dark. He landed softly nearby, folding his wings gracefully and her eyes were drawn to them despite her will.

Forcing herself to focus on him, she straightened and said, "I see both my _andora_ and the wyvern have eluded you again."

"I have my suspicions," he replied with a secretive smile. "Now for my question."

"Ask." She had recovered her aloof poise and the command sounded more like a challenge.

"Would you like to go flying?"

Imbri's eyes widened with shock and she stumbled a few steps back. How had he known? Could she have been _that_ obvious? What a fool she was! Why had she used the Memory Crystal just minutes before their meeting? She should have known it would affect her reaction to him!

"I won't even speak," he added.

She suddenly grew uncharacteristically shy, turning away from him. "I—I can't."

"I didn't ask if you could," he murmured, appearing at her elbow. "I asked if you'd like to."

Dreams of her own pair of wings came back to her in a rush and her resolve weakened. "Well… I suppose I can't pass up an opportunity like this, especially if you won't talk."

"It's a deal."

Dark lifted her up, strong arms supporting her as though she were a doll. His obsidian wings opened, reaching up as far as they could before sweeping downward. They propelled the Phantom Thief and the foreign girl into the air before catching a seawind that carried them higher.

Imbri's black hair streamed out behind her as she turned to look down at the city lights that grew smaller with each passing second. The air turned cold, causing her to cling tighter to Dark to seek warmth. As the knightess pressed closer to her anchor, she caught the smell of nightshade and clean cotton. Such simple scents, they nearly intoxicated her at the altitude and for a moment she was lost in them. Her head lolled against his shoulder and Dark glanced down at the peaceful expression of serenity on her face.

_Are you glad you took my advice? _Daisuke asked shrewdly.

_Okay, so you have good ideas __**sometimes**,_his other half confessed. He couldn't stop looking at the girl's face.

He soared downward, heading in the direction of a pair of mountains. On the slopes of one were the remains of a home nearly destroyed in an avalanche where the thief had stolen a statue once. He alighted soundlessly on a cliff near the peak, and lowered Imbri onto a bed of sweet-smelling mountain clover. It appeared that she had fainted, though by her expression it couldn't have been from terror or lack of oxygen.

After a few moments her eyes slid open and she stared into his violet ones, gradually sitting up.

"That is something I've always wanted to experience. Phantom Dark, you have no idea how much it means to me."

"You don't have to call me 'Phantom', Knightess Imbri."

Kneeling down, he gave her a rare, genuine smile that she couldn't help but reflect.

"Well then, _Dark_, I thought the agreement was that you would utter nothing."

"While we're _flying_," he specified.

She tried not to laugh and almost succeeded, then her eyes turned upward. "They're all so strange. I've never seen constellations like these."

"I know some. That there is our North Star, also called Polaris. Pointing straight to it is the Big Dipper, which is itself part of Ursa Major, or the Big Bear."

Imbri followed his hand as he pointed them out. "I see them! They're very distinct. On my world, our north star is called Idelfin's Eye. Near it is the Snake-Drawn Carriage."

Dark couldn't help looking at her strangely. "How can snakes draw a carriage?"

Her eyebrow raised skeptically. "Why did your planet choose a bear for a constellation that could very well have been a frog? The Dancing Panther is my favored star-pattern, though," she breathed with nostalgia.

After a moment or two of silence, Dark raised his hand to indicate other constellations. "That's Andromeda with the—"

"I recognize that name!" she interrupted excitedly. "She was a princess set out as a sacrifice because of an insult to the sea nymphs!"

"As far as I know," Dark shrugged. He was just glad Daisuke was informing him as he spoke. "Right next to her is the Pegasus."

Imbri went rigid. "Pegasus?"

"Yeah. It's a horse with wings. The Greek legend behind it—"

"Dark." Her uncomfortable tone suggested that she no longer wanted to talk about the stars. "It's such a fair night. Let's not ruin it with tales that should have been long-dead."

The scent of mountain clover surrounded them in a calming haze and she leaned closer to her companion.

"Do me one more favor...bring back my _andora_ soon."

"You'll have it by tomorrow evening," he promised.

(X)

The city's yellow streetlights illuminated the inside of Satoshi Hiwatari's limousine sporadically every seven seconds, giving him the feeling of not entirely being where he was. In the dark spaces between he could very easily picture other places that he'd been to before, most of them unfavorable.

France had only been able to occupy him for a week before he moved on to Italy and then Germany, but still there was the pull that drew him undeniably back home. Eventually he'd given in and returned, but he had no intention of going back to school. He'd tried to be normal and failed miserably. He would no longer deceive himself on that account.

Besides, questions from the Harada girls would be too uncomfortable, and what if they'd told everyone what they'd seen just before the destruction of the Second Hand of Time? He remembered the younger twin calling his name when Krad had taken him over, so she knew he was connected to the white angel without a doubt.

Satoshi's eyes softened as he recalled fighting Krad for control to save Risa Harada's life, then they darkened again as he remembered that things had been changing recently.

His worse half had been taking over more easily and was able to keep him senseless sometimes. Why was it getting so hard to restrain the other? He wished he knew how his grandfather and great-grandfather and so on had been able to rid themselves of Krad, but the Hikaris had kept no records of their family's secret. Satoshi's mother had died when he was still a very young child and everything he learned about their private history from her was oral rather than written, but never once had she given him the key to liberating himself.

It was the one mystery above all others he regretted being unable to solve.

His phone vibrated and he checked to see who the caller was. Ida, a clerk from one of the museums who was in charge of new exhibits. Suppressing a groan, he answered.

"Hiwatari."

"Chief Commander," Miss Ida's voice sounded stressed. "I'm sorry to disturb you so late, but your father told me you would be returning tonight."

Satoshi's eye twitched. How did the man always seem to know what his schedule was? "Has Dark stolen something else?"

"Not since you left, sir, but an artifact was discovered and given to us only yesterday. Since you asked us to inform you of all new additions to our collection, I am only obeying your orders by contacting you."

"Yes, but why call me at ten o'clock at night?"

"Actually, Commander," the woman began whispering nervously, "we have some men from two other museums inspecting the artifact and if you don't intervene they're going to take it. I'm afraid I don't know what to do. The only reason they haven't taken it yet is because they're fighting over which of their museums should be in charge of it."

"I see. I'll be there in ten minutes." Satoshi hung up and ordered the driver to turn around. At least helping the museum delayed the inevitable meeting with his father.

He stepped out of the limousine and mounted the steps to enter the large building. Miss Ida eagerly met him at the door.

"This way, sir. Right now they're arguing about the origin of the artifact, but earlier they were trying to decode some of the symbols. I discovered something you may find interesting, but I'm afraid that first you'll have to convince them to leave it with us."

She led him to one of the back rooms where Satoshi immediately heard angry voices caught up in a bitter debate. He caught the names of several countries including Mesopotamia and Greece, but as soon as he set foot in the room, the voices ceased and every eye riveted to him. Five men stood huddled in a circle around a table, faced off three against two.

"I believe the museum is closed for the night, gentlemen," he said matter-of-factly.

"Chief Commander Hiwatari," one of them bowed stiffly. "This is a private conversation among scholars which does not involve the police."

"And yet I am here." He stood by the entrance, straight-backed and clearly in charge despite his age. "I would hate to have to ask Detective Saehara to come here in the middle of the night and clear up any unresolved issues concerning a historic artifact donated to _this_ museum."

"Recent events suggest that the artwork in _this_ museum would be better protected elsewhere," one of the younger archaeologists snidely remarked.

Silence fell and none of the others offered to back up his statement.

Satoshi's expression didn't change but somehow without moving he seemed to be the tallest, most imposing person in the room. "This artifact is the property of the Central Azumano Museum and I suggest you leave before I lose my patience."

It was impossible to miss the danger in his voice.

Cowed, one by one the archaeologists left, squeezing past him since he refused to move from his position just in front of the door. He thought it was fitting after an insult like that. As soon as Miss Ida locked the door behind the disgruntled men, she returned to find Satoshi inspecting the strange relic.

"One of our employees found it when a belltower downtown was destroyed by a bomb a couple days ago. It must have been secreted away in one of the higher rooms and thrown nearby during the blast."

"No doubt it's a weapon," he speculated, "but I've never seen anything like it. It might have come from the design of a halberd, but this is much more elegant, and with _two_ blades? I get the feeling the forger wanted to make it both beautiful and deadly."

"If you really think it's that nice, try picking it up."

The blue-haired teenager tried to lift it and couldn't even get it off the table.

"What sort of element does it consist of? I've never seen a weapon made from such a dense alloy. It must be at least five hundred years old by the markings, but there isn't a scratch or tarnish marring the surface. I can see my reflection in the blades ," he noted with surprise. His eyes followed the lines of indecipherable script. "They look familiar, but wrong somehow. I can almost see the Greek letters, but they're twisted and don't spell anything legible. I can see why the men were arguing."

"I know. I came to the same conclusion. Of course there are some dialects that could have stemmed from Greek that we don't know about, so there's always that possibility."

"Not very likely, but it's still a possibility. I still wonder who it would have been made for. Everything about it is feminine, even the script was written to be artistic, but the weight makes it impossible to use. It was probably only a decoration somewhere, but I'm not so sure. Oh, what was this discovery you mentioned when I arrived?"

"Oh yes! Sir, I think you're going to be pleased with me."

She picked up a crowbar in the corner and used it to lift the weapon up and then turn it over on the table with a resounding _thunk_. On the opposite side were more symbols, but one at the very top between the crescent blades stood out.

"Recognize it?"

Satoshi bent closer to the carved picture of a rose and noticed the distinctive pattern in the center of its bud that was definitely familiar to him. "The Rose of Eros?"

Miss Ida smiled. "It's exactly the same. I saw that this morning and compared them to make sure."

"Thank you for telling me about this. But if you don't mind, I'd like to see the Rose before I leave."

"I thought you would so I left some of the lights on. I know how you like to be alone when you look at art, so I'll be waiting by the side exit whenever you're ready." She bustled out of the room, darting him a last grateful smile as she left.

Satoshi wondered how she knew so much about his habits. She was rather thoughtful, but letting someone else find out too much about him was dangerous. He would have to change his routine. The young man walked slowly down the halls, following the lights Miss Ida had left on for him until he came to a small nondescript room with a few murals and broken statuettes as well as the Rose.

It was impossible to tell if it had once been a brooch or a necklace or a hairpiece. All that remained after so many centuries was the Rose itself. This artwork had always been puzzling to Satoshi. He sensed magic in it, but the power was sleeping and so small that he wondered if it could ever be woken. The Hikaris hadn't made it. This artifact was far older than anything in his own family, and yet little was known about it for certain except its name and that it had been an heirloom passed down through a Grecian family for generations.

But what was the connection between the Rose and the strange weapon that just _happened_ to be donated to their museum? It was too much of a coincidence. Was there some other force at work here?

"Chief Commander!"

Miss Ida's voice shattered his thoughts and he heard the slap of her shoes as she ran through the museum halls looking for him. Satoshi met her just outside the exhibit room and she was breathing so hard she almost couldn't speak, but stuttered and thrust a paper at him.

"(pant) Found—outside (wheeze)—hurried—for you!"

A growing suspicion began to tickle the back of his mind and he quickly opened the letter to read its contents:

_Thank you for taking care of the __**andora**__ for me. It belongs to a friend who was devastated by its loss. Since this theft is much different than the others, this note is only to let you know it's too late to stop me, not that you could have anyway. Welcome back, Commander Hiwatari.  
Phantom Dark_

Satoshi crumpled the letter in his hand as he raced back toward the room where they'd left the weapon unguarded. Even as he burst through the door, he knew it was pointless to have rushed. The only object there was the crowbar. The blue-haired boy slammed his fist down on the table in frustration. The letter only added insult to injury.

**Evil evil evil! The plot is thickening already! I'll bet you have lots of questions. Too bad. Only one question per day.**


	5. Curse of the Knightess

**It's very sad when I have to update with only a few reviews supporting me, but I suppose that's better than none. Dedications to lilchinkkviet, DaRkSxXWiifeyYX3, and (especially!) Volume-5. Kudos!**

**Chapter 5: Curse of the Knightess**

The sight of the _andora_ in Dark's hands produced the most encouraging reaction he could have hoped for. Imbri's eyes lit up and a radiant smile of joy and amazement bloomed on her face as she rushed forward to take the weapon he held out. She grasped it lightly as though it weighed no more than a simple writing pen and closed her eyes while she cradled it, a single tear rolling down her cheek.

"Dark, you found it! I've never been apart from it for four full days. Where was it?"

"The Azumano Museum. I thought someone might take it there and I was right."

Risa and Riku came up on either side of her to look at the weapon she was so attached to. The younger twin traced some of the symbols along its shaft curiously while her sister was content to inspect it from where she stood. The _andora's_ owner watched Risa's fascination with amusement.

Dark glanced at Imbri, noticing that she had pulled her hair casually back into a ponytail and wore modern clothes as though she had done so all her life. If it weren't for the ancient relic in her hands, she would look almost ordinary.

"You know…" he began, deciding to voice his opinion, "if I didn't know any better, I'd think you were a normal teenager. You look like you could pass for a student at their school."

She looked up at him for a moment and the smile faded. "Unfortunately I am neither normal, nor a teenager. Combat and survival are all I've ever known."

"You're not a teenager?" Risa's high voice broke between them. "Then how old are you?"

Imbri seemed indifferent to their dubious stares. "At my initiation I was given long life and my _andora_, but if I had to give a number I suppose I've been a knightess for a century or so."

"I wish I was a knightess. It seems so exciting and I'd be fourteen forever!" the romantic twin sighed.

"It's certainly exciting, but I have a great responsibility. Almost too great for me to handle now that the knightesses have died away. We are also forbidden many things, namely men." She said the words airily, as though she thought it beneath herself to associate with the opposite sex. "My husband is my duty to the people I protect. I cannot have ties to anyone. Not family and not even friends."

Riku tilted her head to one side questioningly. "Aren't we your friends?"

The older twin thought she saw the glimmer of a dejected spirit in Imbri's eyes before it was eclipsed by her stony exterior once more. "Friendship is a commodity I'm not allowed to have. It would be unwise for me to see you as anything other than my hostesses, and Phantom Dark as an acquaintance. Decorum demands it, I'm afraid."

"It doesn't have to be that way," Dark stated forcefully. "You're not on your world anymore. You don't have to go by their rules."

A new, hard seriousness clouded Imbri's dark brown eyes as she narrowed them at the thief. "You know _nothing_ of me. Goodnight, Phantom Dark."

As she disappeared inside the house, Riku glanced back at Dark to see him staring after the black-haired girl with frustration and bewilderment. Politely excusing herself, she ran after Imbri and found her sitting in the bedroom.

"Why did you say that? He only wanted you to know that things aren't as strict as they are where you come from."

The other didn't reply. She merely leaned her head against the _andora's_ shaft, staring at nothing. And then Riku realized why.

"You like him, don't you? I've seen that look on Risa's face dozens of times."

Fire sprang into Imbri's eyes and she sat up straight. "I _can't_ like him. It's forbidden."

"And I agree with you all the way!" Riku sat on the bed beside her so that they were eye-level with each other. "But sometimes it happens. I don't understand why all the girls he rescues seem to fall under his spell. What is it about him that's so alluring anyway? He's always asking questions but never giving answers. That's why I like the way you've been dealing with him. You put him in line and kept him there. Ha! I think you got him hooked…but I don't think you meant to."

"Indeed, I didn't." The knightess stood up and slowly twirled the _andora_ with one hand. It was familiar and comforting. "Where is the 'Azumano Museum'? I'd like to see the place where my weapon was hidden."

"Just take the tram to the west side of town and it's the biggest building. There are signs everywhere so it's easy enough to find. Do you want us to take you there?"

"I would rather see it by myself. I have been here in this house for four days and only leave with the two of you. I've been observing the local customs on your 'TV'. This will be my first time alone in your city and I'd like to remember it as something I did on my own. Perhaps I will not go to the Azumano Museum tomorrow, but I will tour your city."

"Well…okay. If you're sure you'll be fine."

"I am."

"Just be sure and leave your _andora_ here. I think you'll get in trouble if you lug that thing around."

"Riku!" Risa called, knocking on the door. The two girls looked up and saw her holding the cordless phone. "Guess who."

"Niwa?"

"Like you really have to ask!" the younger twin laughed. "He's using a payphone near here and wanted to know if you felt like meeting up with him tonight."

"Gimme that!" she jumped up and snatched the telephone from her sister, then left the room. The black-haired girl could hear her chatting animatedly down the hall.

"Imbri?" Risa wondered as she took Riku's place by her side, drawing her knees up to her chest in a girlish fashion. "I was wondering what it's really like to be a knightess. You told me stories about fighting monsters and all that, but what's it _really_ like? Aren't you lonely?"

The other sat back. "I haven't thought about that for a long time. I suppose I was rather lonely when my fellow knightesses began to disappear, but that was long ago and I've borne the solitude quite well since then. My _andora_ is the only company I need. It's my closest and dearest friend. We've been together from the very beginning and I know we'll be together at the very end."

Risa watched her rub the _andora's_ blades fondly. "You treat it like it's alive."

"Sometimes…" she leaned closer to whisper, "I think it just might be. I've been sensing a tiredness about it recently, which makes me weary too. That's why I'm so grateful to you and your sister for being my hostesses. I would never get a chance to rest otherwise."

"Is that all you've been doing the past few days while we're at school? Resting?"

"Mostly that if I'm not watching your TV. I can't remember a time I haven't been only half-asleep to be alert for danger. It's the most wonderful thing of all: being able to sleep safely. You're very fortunate to have known that your whole life. I envy you in that way."

"Uh…thanks, I guess." Risa fell into an awkward silence and couldn't think of a way to phrase her next question tactfully. "Well, I guess I'll see you in the morning."

She stood up to go but just before she exited, decided to say it. "Out of curiosity…how did you become a knightess?"

Imbri paused, thinking. "Before our Knighthood was banned, we were all orphans trained until we turned seventeen. Always girls. It never worked on males."

"Was there a ceremony?"

"Naturally. I remember receiving the _andora_ for the first time. The other girls with me got simpler weapons. Swords, bows and the like. And then—" She stopped suddenly, realizing her hand had crept up to touch a chain around her neck. Imbri jerked it away muttering, "Just a simple ceremony."

"Oh. Okay." The long-haired twin knew something wasn't being said. She began to leave and then turned back. "Imbri?"

She looked up a second time. "Yes?"

"If I was a knightess would I really not have anything to do with men?"

Imbri gave one of her few true smiles. "Yes. But I think it would be unfortunate for a pretty thing like you who must be very popular."

"The way things are going, I don't think I'll ever get married." She sighed despondently and then abruptly continued with anger. "I swear! All the cute guys at school are jerks, and all the rest who are worth it are either taken or won't have anything to do with me! It's hopeless and I've decided to give up completely on them!" She sniffed, raising her chin haughtily before stalking out of the room.

Imbri laughed. It was the perfect attitude for a knightess!

"Imbri?" Risa poked her head in the door.

"_**Yes?**_ " the knightess asked, wondering if she would get any sleep at all.

"Sweet dreams." The door closed at last. A minute or so later, the muted sound of water running in the shower came through the wall and Risa's voice could be heard as she sang a song horribly off-key.

The stranger sat where she had frozen, a new, different sadness clouded her features. "How can someone whose name means _Nightmare_ have sweet dreams…?"

(X)

Imbri stood outside on the balcony, staring distractedly at the stars. Their foreign configurations made her realize just how far she was from home and deadened her hope of ever returning to the land she knew. And yet the more she considered it, the less she wanted to return. But what other choice did she have? She was a knightess, sworn to protect and defend her homeland. Even if she had to die.

A shadow came gliding down from the sky and Imbri instantly turned to go inside.

"Wait!" the thief called to her.

"Dark, I've told you everything I know," she said as he landed near her.

It had been four days since the return of her _andora_ and, as promised, she had told him every facet of her encounter with the wyvern and everything she had learned about them over her long years of service. He didn't seem interested in it so much because apparently he wanted to avoid killing the beast.

She'd also spoken less formally to him about idle things: her interests and such. As he continued to come back, Imbri realized how dangerous it was getting. For them both.

It was no longer his wings that drew her to him. There was a kindness and gentleness in his nature that reminded her of someone, but when she tried to use the Memory Crystal to revive the face she found so familiar, it only brought back the night he had taken her flying. And the feelings she had felt then, only more intensely.

"You have no further use for me. Now if you would kindly cease your visits I will be content."

The black-winged angel didn't move to leave. He stared at her, trying to see what she was hiding. "Why did you turn to go when you saw me approaching?"

Her dark eyes found his and an emotion which was difficult to describe shone from them. "Because there are some things which are meant to remain secrets. I think it would have been better if you had never known me."

"But I _want _to know you!" he ventured, coming closer. "You're the first woman in a long time that I've wanted to know. You're so mysterious and different, not mainly because you're from another world. You don't remind me of my first love, and yet I feel the way I did long ago when I knew her. Just give me a chance."

Imbri seemed untouchable as she coldly spun away from him, her voice monotone. "I'm sorry, but I can't associate with you any longer, Phantom Dark."

"There you go with the title again!" he snapped. "I want to spend time with you. Why don't you want to be with me?"

"I can't risk knowing you. Knowing a person often leads to caring, then friendship, then love…and then _always_ pain for me." The explanation appeared to take a great deal of effort for her and she said it with bitterness.

"What relationship doesn't? You aren't unique in that. I experienced the worst pain of my life when I refused to have anything to do with the woman I loved. It tore me apart inside! Maybe you've loved and lost, but that's no reason to avoid it forever. There's always the danger of losing again and it never changes, but you will never know true love if you never truly _try_."

Silence fell between them. Neither one stirred. Imbri could hardly breathe, the air had become so thick and heavy. She tried to leave, but for some reason her muscles refused to respond. She couldn't refute him. But he didn't understand.

"I've never loved," came her hushed reply. "Not beyond a single lustful moment."

Dark stared at her in incomprehension before demanding, "Then _why_ are you so afraid?"

"I'm not afraid! You don't know anything about me!" Her eyes kindled with anger and the knightess flung her hair out of her face so that she could glare at him.

"That's only because you won't let me get close to you!" he retorted sharply, stepping forward. Even his feathers bristled with anger. "Nothing I say or do gets through that armor of yours. _All _women are the same. They'll do anything to avoid pain."

"I will _not_ have this reproach from you! I'm not a coward! I'm not afraid of pain and I'll prove it to you." Her demeanor changed and she straightened as though challenging him. "Kiss me."

Dark stared at her, but she was completely serious. Her eyes, which had been blazing moments before, were now quietly resigned, almost sad. It was such a radical change that he didn't believe it at first, but she continued to wait and he approached her. Taking her in his arms, he brushed the back of his fingers against her cheek. Leaning forward, he pulled her closer and whispered,

"I'll prove to you that it doesn't have to be about pain."

"I wish you could," she breathed almost helplessly.

Dark closed the short distance between them and pressed his lips against hers, feeling her heart race as he embraced her tightly. He remembered holding Rika this way long ago, but her face faded from his mind and the only name he could think of was Imbri's. The thief's fingers twisted into strands of her raven hair, the smell of ginger wafting softly up from it.

For the first time in more years than she could recall, Imbri felt her sorrow and loneliness evaporate. They had become so much a part of her that she had accepted them in silence, abandoning all hope of ever finding true laughter and felicity to replace them. The impervious wall that she'd built up between herself and others crumbled as if it had been crafted from nothing more than feathers, leaving her defenseless.

As she felt Dark's warm hand caress the skin along her throat, she gave in and kissed back. It was a ravenous action, spurred by the sudden need to feel intimate contact, but moreso by the feeling rising deep within her, fiery and bewitching. The pure, clean flavor of his mouth like snowmelt was invigorating, and all caution fell away from her mind.

Time froze in an eternal moment as the couple lost themselves in a passionate embrace.

And then it happened!

An eruption of magic like red lightning burned between them, throwing Dark back so forcefully that he flew off the balcony from the unexpected assault. Instincts alone rescued him as he expanded his wings to remain airborne. Imbri too had been flung back, striking the wall of the house to collapse in a motionless heap. The Phantom Thief breathed hard as he set down on the balcony again. He held one hand against his chest just over his heart where the magic had affected him most strongly. If he'd been an ordinary human like Daisuke he might have been killed!

He neared the still girl with concern in every staggering step. Kneeling heavily at her side, Dark noticed a chain around her neck with a pendant. He knew it was from this that the magic had originated. It radiated a power that pulsed with her quickened heartbeat.

Imbri's eyes cracked open and he could see the suppressed waves of pain she was holding back. Not even a whimper passed her lips, but her agony was evident.

"_Now_ do you understand?" she whispered hoarsely. "I can't risk caring for you because…because it will kill me. If I could love…_oh,_ that I could love! But I can't."

"You can't take it off, can you?" he wondered, pointing to the source of the violent magic.

She tucked the necklace beneath her shirt quickly and looked away from him. "No. Doing so would also mean my death. It gives me my strength and my youth."

Silence stretched between them as understanding and sorrow overwhelmed Dark's mind. Daisuke wisely remained silent, realizing that a gulf so wide that neither could cross divided the thief and knightess. They sat still for what seemed like an eternity until Imbri finally looked at him.

"The wyvern will return to take its revenge on me in six days. It would be best if we didn't meet again."

The visitor's eyes darted up and he opened his mouth to protest, but slowly closed it again. He stared at her forlornly once more before turning away and spreading his wings wide. Imbri didn't watch him go. It would have only caused her more pain. Instead she returned inside the house, her thoughts full of regret and indecision.

(X)

In the darkness of her room, Risa closed the window and wished she'd never eavesdropped on them. She had long since given up on Dark, knowing as she did that he could never love her the way he had her grandmother.

But listening to him speak to Imbri in that way made her long for someone to speak to her in a similar fashion. She knew that she could never have any hope with him. Not when he cared so deeply for another. Or perhaps two others.

Was it possible he had given all of his love to two different people, both of them untouchable?

She pulled out her Tarot cards and asked a silent question before shuffling them. One by one she carefully laid them down. One by one she slowly turned them over. Once the whole picture could be seen, the twin decoded the message. With a confused noise, she slumped back in her chair.

"What does 'a gift of death and a curse of adoration combining' mean? And what about 'losing herself to a friend'? This must be the craziest prediction I've ever gotten! There's nothing about Mr. Dark here. Must be a dud."

**How many of you think she's wrong? Of course, nobody will know exactly what that means until the very end anyway, so **_**ha!**_** To be honest, though, Tarot cards totally creep me out. I've heard some pretty scary stories about people getting mixed up with them or other items of witchcraft. The realm of imagination is one thing, but getting physically/spiritually involved can lead to some real demonic experiences. Best just to leave it alone.**

**Anyway, not much happened here but I promise the next one will have more excitement in it. At least I hope so…**


	6. Lovely Rose

**Thanks to Avia Jenith's wonderful reviews, I decided I was taking too long to update. And as a disclaimer, when I was watching the show I noticed that the strong lovey-dovey feelings of either Dark or Daisuke changing into the other pretty much got sifted into the background. Since I didn't want to mess around w/ Imbri suddenly opening her eyes to see a short redhead kid, I'm just going to use the excuse that Dark can control himself fairly well.  
Anyway, enough talk. Hope y'all like it!**

**Chapter 6: Lovely Rose**

Everything about the museum was entrancing. So much history had been preserved, almost immortalized. Imbri wished her own people had done such things. If they had, the _andora's_ secrets might not have been lost.

The art everywhere evoked in her a sense of nostalgia and longing. She recognized some of the weapons in one section of the museum and realized with amazement that her world and this world had crossed once many, many centuries past. Curiously she wondered why her own world had remained trapped in its circle of mindless traditions while this one advanced beyond the imagination of her own people.

The TV had confused her on many aspects, though. Sometimes it was informatory, and often gave advertisements, but other times there were accounts of people living very dramatic lifestyles. Risa called them "romantic training shows" and Riku referred to them as "cheesy soap operas."

Before the twins had left that morning they gave Imbri a piece of paper with strange symbols on it. "It's our home number. Just find a phone somewhere and punch in these if you ever get in trouble," Riku had advised. She'd committed the symbols to memory for any possible future use.

The raven-haired girl thrust those idle thoughts aside and walked on, admiring the sculptures and murals that were so reminiscent of the land she had been parted from. As she was passing a room, the urge to stop overwhelmed her. It was so strong that the breath was almost thrust from her body. A person behind nearly collided with her and muttered something about tourists.

Imbri turned back toward the room and entered it. Nothing was particularly interesting there. It was actually an ordinary space lacking much of the elegance that clothed most of the other artworks. Flat slabs of stone missing half the pictures thanks to age and neglect lined the walls. Above them were brackets for swords from unknown eras and expired lineages. Statuettes broken almost beyond recognition were placed on pedestals. Several small glass cases containing tarnished jewelry without histories were set up in the corners.

This was a chamber of lost memories.

One of the glass cases inevitably drew the black-haired girl to it. She stared for a long moment, shock and then joy stealing her words away.

"You're the answer to all my problems! I've been searching for you my whole life," she whispered to the Rose once she had recovered her voice. "I am the last knightess of Aeledria and I swear by my own blood that I will return to claim you very soon."

(X)

"It's time."

The stranger to this world pulled on her black armor with practiced motions. The preparation reminded her of a battle half a century past when her fellow knightesses still lived, long before she became a mercenary. It had still been a time when honor and duty transcended all of society rather than just the female warriors who had been given no choice in their destiny.

Adrenaline flowed through her veins, adding to her strength. The night was already halfway through when her figure made its way across the rooftops of the city. Imbri leaped skillfully over gaps that no ordinary person could cross. Her limber muscles responded with bursts of speed before she jumped. Whenever she landed, there was hardly a sound besides the scuff of her shoes.

This concrete city didn't know how much simpler it was to traverse above the streets.

She spotted her destination just ahead and a grin of anticipation crossed her face. Making sure once again that her _andora_ was strapped securely to her back, the knightess took a running leap that helped her cross the widest street yet. She hit the sloping roof hard and flattened her body against it to keep from sliding off the edge. Pausing momentarily to orient herself, Imbri rose to a crouch and slid along the gutter until she was just above a window.

It was several feet below and she swung over the edge, holding herself there with one hand for a few seconds before pivoting inward and letting go to land on the narrow protrusion. Loosening the straps holding her _andora_, she removed the weapon and used it to neatly slice apart the bars between her and the makeshift entrance to the museum. They dropped away to the flowerbed below and she inserted the crescent blades into the middle of the latched windows, then with a quick jerk, broke the lock.

She hadn't lost her touch.

But she was unaware of the silent alarm alerting someone nearby to her presence.

(X)

Satoshi's glasses glinted, reflecting the lights so that his eyes remained hidden. They always gave him the impression of wearing a mask. He probably was.

Wearily, his gaze strayed from the barred windows to the glass case of the Rose. No warning letter had come, but he had the inkling suspicion that this would be next and without notice. The true connection between the last theft and this piece still remained to be seen, but he knew the Phantom would return.

This was the fifth night he had spent in the museum and although he had grown bored with the undisturbed silence, he was by no means discouraged. Patience was the key.

A light on his remote began to blink, signaling that someone had tripped the alarm. Satoshi stared at it in confusion. Dark would never be clumsy enough to do that by accident, but why let him know he was coming? Was the thief taunting him again?

Before he could ponder what it might possibly mean, a different sensation grabbed him. He doubled over gasping. "What? _Why,_ Krad? You can't do this now!" The painful changes were enveloping him.

_Master Satoshi, _Krad almost seemed to chide,_ did you think I was losing my strength? I've been quiet for weeks. It's high time I stretched my __wings!_

With that word, both wings ripped out of his body and Satoshi convulsed, a loud shout tearing from his throat. He lay at the base of the Rose's glass case trying to grasp any memories or thoughts that would let him keep hold of himself, but all in vain.

"Leave me alone," he choked out weakly. "You always interfere and ruin everyth—"

He cut off to utter a last desperate cry before his body was completely taken over by the parasite within. The young man felt Krad push him away into a closed corner of his mind where he remained trapped, unable to see or feel anything outside the dark prison.

(X)

The girl in black armor slipped through the museum's hallways, stopping suddenly as she heard someone call out ahead. She could feel the pain in his voice, but it was silenced so quickly that she could only guess what had happened: someone had been killed.

She wasn't afraid. Reining in her concern for the victim, the knightess furtively passed rooms full of artworks and old relics until she came to the place where the Rose was kept.

Someone robed in white was inside and she could see a pair of snowy wings extending from his back, reminiscent of someone else she knew. Imbri stared at the man standing beside the glass case. He appeared so calm and serene. Everything about him was confident as well as cold.

There was no body on the floor, but she was certain he was the cause of the earlier cry.

His back was to her and she remained perfectly still. "You are not as stealthy as you believe, Dark Mousy."

The knightess stepped forward at her discovery. There was no point in pretending now. "I am no mouse."

The white angel snapped around, astonished. Apparently he'd been waiting for someone else. But surprise turned to scorn in the space of a moment. "My, my. There is more than one thief in this city. I would have expected someone a bit more glamorous, but I suppose I can't be particular."

Imbri's face darkened and she drew the _andora_ from her back swiftly. "If you believe that to be so, then fight me. Let's see if you're as strong as you are offensive."

Krad drew forth a white feather and began to whisper words of power, but Imbri broke in.

"I see! You're more cowardly than I thought. At least a man would have fought me rather than use magic to defeat someone. But I suppose one such as yourself has no pride or honor to uphold." She snorted. "Pity. You were so handsome too."

The derision in her voice made the smirk fade from Krad's face. "Very well. We shall see how long you last against a true warrior, _girl_."

Opening his white wings, he flew over to the wall where several weapons were displayed. Plucking one sword from its resting-place, the robed man returned to the floor. He stared at her a second before his pinions suddenly dissolved into a flurry of scattered feathers.

"Are we on even terms yet?"

He didn't wait for an answer before surging forward with the sword raised high. She blocked his attack with her _andora's_ shaft, expertly catching the sword between the blades and twisting it so that his weapon was yanked away and cast across the room. She came swinging it back at his head, but he leaped upward and backward, balancing atop a table in the center of the room. A deft kick deflected her attack and he jumped over her to retrieve his sword.

The weapons glanced off each other with gold sparks and metallic clangs. Imbri accidentally over-lunged and the angel's hand caught her forearm, keeping her from using the stave. But the knightess smiled, excitement lighting her features as she backflipped away to twist out of his grip.

"I haven't had a challenge in a long time," she laughed.

Krad gritted his teeth, anger beginning to show in his eyes as he missed her again and his sword shattered a case of silver brooches. Diverting as it was, he didn't have the patience to deal with an ordinary thief. He put all his force into the next blow. She met his weapon and they pushed against one another, each straining to gain the advantage. But their strengths seemed to be equal.

Abruptly Imbri ducked beneath their blades and spun into him, ramming her elbow into his stomach. Krad, surprised by the cheating blow, doubled over.

"I have no time to play with you, however," she amended.

Running to the glass case, she sliced it open with the _andora_. Glass crashed to the floor and she snatched the artifact, but just as her hand closed around the Rose's stem she heard sirens approaching outside. Realizing that their presence had not gone wholly undetected, she turned to leave, but suddenly her limbs were inexplicably frozen.

Her eyes found the angel and she saw a golden glow enveloping his hand. He was using magic! "I am through with this game as well," Krad glared at her.

"I should have known!" Imbri spat. "Craven to the last."

He ignored her words as he walked forward slowly. "I have better things to do than kill you, especially since you served to be so entertaining. Still…you were rather insulting."

His hand closed lightly about hers holding the Rose. They stared into each other's eyes, one with disdain and the other with defiance. A wicked smile flitted across his face as he squeezed suddenly and the Rose's metal thorns dug deep into her flesh. Imbri gasped from the unexpected petty retaliation.

"A compromise," he leered at her. Then mocking her earlier words, "Pity. You were so lovely too."

The white-robed man forced her bleeding hand open and took the Rose while she stood frozen by his spell. His wings materialized with a burst of pale feathers and he threw the sword straight up to break the skylight.

She watched helplessly as he soared through the window with her prize. The enchantment faded the moment he was gone and Imbri angrily cut through the nearby window with her _andora_. It was past time for her to leave. Leaping through the air, she spread her arms and braced her feet just before impacting the ground two stories below. She fell into a forward roll, but was instantly up again and running as several police officers spotted her.

Jumping lightly on top of an officer's car, she used it to spring up to the top of a traffic light and from there to the roof of a house where she vanished from their sight. Imbri didn't bother to gloat over the exclamations of the stunned policemen.

She had failed.

Meanwhile Krad was congratulating himself. The foolish girl had tried and done better than he would have expected for a mere human. He still wasn't quite sure why he'd let her words reach him, though. Something about her was different from others. Something that rejected his scorn to the extent that he found it hard to insult her, though much easier to hate.

He was so wrapped up in his thoughts that the angel of light didn't realize the Rose of Eros was glowing until it gave off a bright flash that seared into his eyes and mind. Time stopped and the world ceased to move, then it began again with a deafening roar that spun him out of control and nearly threw him to the earth.

Krad barely managed to land on the rooftop of a tall building where he paused to reorient himself. Something strange had happened. Something he'd never felt before washed over him with the same purity of his hatred, but it felt somehow heavier and paler. He glanced down at the Rose and remembered the girl at the museum. All his thoughts centered around her, no longer twisted with antipathy, but filled with quite a different emotion.

"What is it…?" he wondered almost too quietly to be heard.

He took wing again and searched the area around the museum. It didn't take long to spot her from above. The small figure almost danced along the rooftops across the town, seemingly tireless. She finally reached an avenue of trees leading to a large home situated on a cliff. The black-haired girl made her way along the road toward the mansion and used her strange weapon to pole-vault over a high fence. On the other side, she effortlessly scaled the wall of the house and vanished into an open window.

Krad forced himself to leave. These strange feelings were strong, but he was stronger. Whatever had happened, he would not give in on a whim. Tucking the Rose safely into his robe, he returned to the home of his host.

**You didn't expect ****that**** now, did you? Oh, what a tangled web I weave! Can you imagine Krad liking ****anyone**


	7. Secrets Exposed

**This is my first attempt to portray Daisuke. Hope I didn't butcher him.**

**Chapter 7: Secrets Exposed**

Daisuke tried to pay attention to the teacher, but his mind kept wandering. Memories of that night continued to follow him, and it had almost been four days since then.

Maybe what bothered him the most was that Dark hadn't given up. Every night an hour after dusk he took over whether Daisuke liked it or not and flew over to the Harada mansion. Then he just watched. The black angel wouldn't even let down his guard enough to let his partner into his thoughts. The boy wished he knew what Dark was thinking, but all he'd ever found out went against everything that the thief was doing now.

He thought Dark loved Rika Harada, but now his thoughts were all about Imbri. He thought Dark had given up on loving because he could never be with anyone, but he had kissed Imbri with such passion and feeling. Nothing could ever come of any of Dark's relationships, but Imbri's curse mirrored his dilemma, preventing anything between them twice over.

And yet he sensed hope in his other half whenever thoughts of Imbri arose…which was often.

"Niwa!"

He snapped out of his reverie and realized the room was completely empty except for Riku and himself.

"It's lunchtime. Were you going to eat outside?" she asked, her amber eyes sparkling at him.

The redhead smiled genuinely. "Anywhere as long as it's with you." They walked out the door and he glanced at her. "So…how's your cousin?"

"Who? Oh, my cousin! Well, Imbri's been a bit less cheerful recently." Riku rubbed her temples tiredly. "I told you about her crush, right? Turns out he liked her back, but since she's going away soon they decided not to get together. What really bugs me is the fact that he hasn't even been by to see her in four days. _Four days!_ He should know that she looked forward to spending time with him."

"Maybe he has other things to do," Daisuke offered.

"Oh please! This guy is one of the biggest boneheads on the face of the planet! He should be there with her instead of floating around town doing who-knows-what."

"Maybe he's leaving her alone because she asked him to."

"What? Why would she do that? This is the only time she's ever going to have with the guy!"

"Hey, you two! Going out for a rrromantic lunch? Yo, Harada. Looking really sweet today. Is that a new outfit?" Takeshi Saehara winked coyly at Riku as he sidled up beside them.

She blinked blankly at him.

"No? Well, who can tell when you dress the same way every day? Guess what the latest scoop is!"

The twin rolled her eyes. "Does it have anything to do with Dork? Sorry, I mean _Dark_."

"The papers say yes, my old man says no." He leaned closer, putting his arms around their shoulders and pulling their heads together. "A minor artifact called the Rose of Eros was stolen last night but there was no warning letter. Plus, the police who arrived on the scene saw two people, not one. One of them had wings like Dark, but they were white instead of black. Sadly, I have only eyewitness accounts of that, so no solid proof. But the other thief was caught on the video camera of a cop car. I got some pictures."

He held out an envelope and Daisuke curiously opened it. The figure in it had black hair streaming out behind her as she was caught in a pose leaping onto the top of a police car.

"_No way!_ " Riku gawked.

"Yeah, I know." Takeshi grinned as he stared over their shoulders. "Looks like we have a female Phantom too. The next is even better. Looklooklook! Isn't that the _cutest _girl you've ever seen? If I ever find her I'm gonna ask for her number," he sighed wistfully.

The second picture was a close-up as she balanced on top of a traffic light. Her eyes were turned up toward the sky, narrowed with what appeared to be anger. The last showed her swinging the _andora_ in an arc as she got ready to jump again. The motion was so quick that the picture only had a blur of silver where the weapon should have been.

"How exactly did you get hold of these?" the redhead wondered. "Didn't you say they were on a video camera?"

"Daisuke, Daisuke, Daisuke…" The boy shook his head in disappointment. "What year do you think this is? There are computer programs that can enhance pictures of people so that you can see the reflection of what they're looking at in their _eyes_. Getting still shots off a moving picture is a slice of pie for me."

"No, I meant how did you get your hands on a film that belongs to the police? Did you steal it?"

Takeshi suddenly became nervous and snatched the pictures back. "I—I have my sources. Just thought you should know. I'm trying to decide which one to use for the school paper. Which do you think would work the best?"

"Uh…this one." Given little choice, he pointed to the picture with Imbri looking up at the sky.

"Thanks. See you guys later!" Takeshi ran down the hall, but Riku continued to stare after him in near-shock. Daisuke understood her feelings, but couldn't let on that he recognized the model in the photos.

"Something wrong?"

"N-no! I just…that girl was—" she stopped. "Never mind. Sounds like she stole that rose from the museum." The words were said with almost shame.

"I don't think the look on her face was very victorious. Takeshi said someone else was there. Maybe that guy took it instead."

"Yeah, maybe." But the girl with short, auburn hair slowly walked outside with him, her eyes focused on something near her feet.

_It looks like Imbri's taken up my job,_ Dark's voice echoed in his head. _What would she want with the Rose, though? Its power's been dormant for centuries and will probably never rouse. No one even knows what it does. Still, I wonder why Krad stole it instead._

_Are you sure it was Krad?_ Daisuke questioned.

_Positive. It sure wasn't me! There aren't that many other guys flying around town, if you haven't noticed._

_But what are we going to do about it?_

His voice suddenly turned sour. _Nothing. She doesn't want me to bother her, so I won't. She doesn't want my help, so I won't even offer. If she can't pull off a simple heist, why should I worry about it? _

Daisuke didn't reply to his other half. Instead he took Riku by the hand, comforting her without saying a word. She smiled gratefully at him.

(X)

Imbri dropped down on the inside of the Haradas' grounds from a tree branch. She knew the gate was open, but where was the challenge in simply walking in? The last rays of sunset had faded long ago and the knightess was slightly nervous about returning so late.

She'd been searching for the blond culprit since noon with no success. Without a proper understanding of this world, it was hopeless unless he came looking for her.

And there was no chance of that.

Nimble as a dryad, she sprang up into the branches of another tree near the window of her hostess' room. Making sure there was no one inside, Imbri slipped into the chamber. The comforting sight of her _andora_ safely in the corner reassured her. If she was very fortunate, she could pretend to have been there all along.

A second later the door jerked open and Imbri was instantly on guard. She'd already assumed a defensive stance by the time she realized that it was only Riku. At first the twin was surprised, but then her expression turned hostile.

"_Why_ did you do it?!"

"Do what?" She couldn't think of anything that would provoke the teenager. Riku slammed the door shut and stormed over, jabbing one accusing finger at the knightess.

"You stole that rose at the museum last night while we were asleep. I should have known!"

Now she understood, but the other continued to speak.

"You know, one of the reasons I decided to go along with this charade in letting you stay here was because I knew you disapproved of what Dark does. Now I find out you've been lying the whole time. Not only are you obsessed with him, but you're a criminal too!"

Imbri made a halfhearted attempt to defend herself. "I didn't steal it, Riku. And it's not what you think."

She spun away, throwing her arms up angrily. "You have no idea how much I want to believe that. But how can I? How can I trust anything you say now that I know you're a thief just like him?"

"Because we don't steal for the same reasons!" she unexpectedly yelled, cutting the twin off.

Riku stood there, stunned at the response. She'd never seen Imbri angry before. The girl with ebony hair glared darkly at her, a dangerous aura suddenly radiating thickly from her body. It faded gradually and her eyes softened. Riku realized she had backed up against the wall and flinched at the sound of a deep apologetic sigh.

"I need the Rose," Imbri explained more quietly. Guilt had entered her tone.

The short-haired girl finally realized that perhaps there was a plausible motive behind the attempted burglary. "Why?"

"To be quite honest, I don't know. All I can fathom is that it has something to do with my _andora_. When I passed it in the museum, it called out to me. The moment I saw it…I knew my search was over at last," she whispered.

"Search? What do you mean by that?"

Imbri picked up her weapon and meandered over to the open window where she stood uncomfortably. "I'm not sure. I suppose ever since I received my _andora_ I've been trying to find it, but I never even knew I was looking until now."

"But what do you need it for?"

There was no reply at first and Riku was afraid she'd offended Imbri again, but couldn't tell because she faced away from her. Unsure of what to say, she began to step toward the exit, but the foreigner's voice stopped her. It was strained, as if she was trying to remember something elusive.

"There were…stories told in the training houses before I became a knightess. I heard legends about our predecessors who searched for the missing pieces of their _andoras_. Once they found them…they ceased to be knightesses: some grew old normally, some vanished, and some died peaceful deaths. All the stories varied depending on the desires of the women, but I never thought they might be true…not until I saw the Rose yesterday."

"So you're saying if you get your hands on this rose, you'll die? Why would you want to do _that?_ Stay as far away from it as you possibly can!"

Imbri directed a wry smile devoid of humor at her hostess. "Spoken like one who has never had a taste of immortality. Why don't you tell me why I was chosen to live this unending life of suffering and destruction? I will not give up my one chance at final peace."

"I…I'm sorry. I didn't understand." Riku couldn't stand to look at the heavy expression of pain written all over Imbri's face. She left silently, knowing her presence wouldn't help.

"None ever have." The knightess turned away once more to stare blankly out the window.

Hidden in the shadows beyond Imbri's sight, a dark figure closed his eyes and sighed, "I do."

A moment later he was gone.

(X)

The white-winged man knew the house vaguely. One of Satoshi's faint memories told him it was the home of the two irksome girls that had gotten in his way once or twice before. If they were accommodating the strange girl then they possibly knew something about her.

Krad breathed in deeply, remembering the past three days. He'd remained silent within Satoshi, reflecting on everything that had passed that night, but especially his abrupt change after the battle. It didn't have the result he had expected.

Every movement, every word of hers was crystallized in his memory. If anything, his feelings had strengthened to the breaking point. He _had_ to know her!

Swooping in low, he glided to the open window of Risa Harada's bedroom and peered in at her sleeping form. The rustle of his wings as he hovered there woke her. Amber eyes suddenly locked on his, widening with fear and recognition.

Krad bolted inside and covered her mouth so that she could make nothing but a muffled noise in the back of her throat. Then he was through the window again and flying above the ocean. Risa's eyes bulged in terror as she struggled in the arms of someone who had once tried to kill her.

"If you scream I'll make sure you drown," he warned, slowly taking his hand from her mouth. She didn't shout. It was too clear that he wasn't joking.

"_What do you want?_ " she squeaked, glancing nervously down at the choppy waves. The shoreline was receding rapidly.

"The girl living with you, the one with black hair and a strange weapon. Tell me everything you know about her."

"Imbri? N-no! She's nobody. Just our cousin."

"You expect me to believe that?" Krad sneered. He didn't have the patience to put up with this brat's flimsy fibs. "She's no more related to you than I am. Where is she really from? I can sense your lies, little girl."

Risa cowered in his arms, tears already dripping down her cheeks. She didn't want to betray her friend, but she was too scared of the man holding her life in his hands. "She's from another world and brought a dragon with her."

"That's not all you know." He loosened his grip on her waist threateningly and she cried out, trying to cling to him as he flew closer to the water. "What else?"

"The dragon's coming soon to hunt her down because she killed its master. I don't know anything else, I swear!"

Suddenly Risa's abductor released her. The twin fell through the air screaming until she slammed into the icy waves below. Saltwater filled her eyes, nose, mouth and ears so that every sense blended together into one numb, voiceless shriek. Flailing wildly, she broke the surface with a gasp and promptly swallowed more water as the sea swelled over her. She could hardly swim and felt as though every bone in her body was stiff.

Just above her she could see the man with white wings watching, unconcerned.

"Help! Hiwatari, please!" she choked out just before another wave crashed down on her head.

Krad shuddered as he felt his human half struggling to get free. "Don't even try, Master Satoshi. How will you be able to save her this far from shore without wings? Both of you will die if you take over now."

The mental wrestling ceased as Satoshi retreated in defeat.

"Tell me what I need to know!" he shouted to the helpless human.

"A curse! She's cursed!" the girl managed to yell.

Instantly Krad pulled her out of the water. Risa sobbed and clung to him with frozen fingers, not caring that he had just attempted to drown her.

"Tell me about this curse," he commanded, ignoring the pitiful weeping. "I could drop you again."

"N-n-no! Don't let me go! I d-don't wanna die!" she pleaded through her stammers. "She can't have friends. If she loves anyone, it'll kill her. She wants to be free but if she takes her necklace off, she'll die!"

The words seemed to strike a chord in her captor and Risa feared for her life as she saw the shock and disbelief on his face. His grip tightened around her, though, and he turned back toward land without a word.

The wind chilled her nightclothes, making her shiver uncontrollably as they flew. She remained quiet in case he only needed an excuse to leave her to the sharks.

Minutes later he set down on the balcony of her home. The girl's legs were like rubber and she fell down immediately. Looking up at him through her sea-soaked hair, she begged, "Why me? Why do you hate me? _Why,_ Hiwatari?"

Krad took a step toward her and narrowed his eyes with distaste. "_Little vixen_. The sight of you gives him strength to fight me. Still…you might prove useful." A feather appeared in his hand. "None of this ever happened."

The brown-haired girl gave a short cry as the feather glowed and then—she looked around the empty balcony in confusion. The door opened behind her as Riku and Imbri rushed outside.

"Risa, what are you doing out here? How did you get all wet?" Riku demanded.

"Huh? I…" She put a hand to her head as it began to ache and couldn't stop trembling, though she wasn't sure if it was only from the cold. "I don't know."

"Wait right here. I'll get a blanket." Her elder sibling rushed back inside.

Their guest gave the sopping girl a penetrating stare. "Why did you scream?"

Riku returned and wrapped a blanket around her sister's shoulders. "Oh, don't pester her, Imbri. She was probably sleepwalking and had a nightmare or something. Come on. Let's get you cleaned off inside. How the heck did you get saltwater all over yourself? Never mind. I probably shouldn't ask."

Imbri glanced out into the night for a moment before joining her hostesses. Risa's appearance was suspicious without a doubt, but there was little she could do about it. She closed the balcony door but could still feel eyes staring out from the darkness.

The white angel gazed after her, every facet of his being yearning to seize her now and express his unmasked feelings. But no, if such an act could kill her then he would restrain himself. There was more than one way to defeat a curse.

He winged toward the home of his host, a plan already forming in his mind. His work would have to be done cleverly. He could always lay a few false trails to put Satoshi off the scent.

Intelligent Tamers were the worst.

(X)

Morning. Sunlight glinted off shattered glass. His window was broken again.

Satoshi lay on the floor of his bedroom, weakened by the angel's nighttime activities. Clutching a hand to his pained chest, he suddenly noticed a secret panel in the wall open. Anger flashed into his eyes and he stumbled over to it.

"The Blind Hands, Tainted Candle, Snaring Chain…they're missing!" He moved over to another hidden place and found it empty. "The Archer's Secret too? What does he want with it?"

Two more artworks were missing: the Harmony of Souls and the Fallen Knight's Cloak, both of which were powerful.

He'd used the Harmony of Souls once, which separated his mind from his body, and barely managed to return to himself before the time limit ran out. The Cloak, though strong enough to bind magical objects, was harmless.

But none of the thefts were to be taken lightly.

"Why can't I remember?" he asked the broken glass littering the floor. "I saw Miss Harada for a moment…but I couldn't save her. Then he locked me away again. Why was he after her? What did he do? Why did he take all these? What is he planning?"

So many questions and no way to answer them.

He wondered if he should contact Daisuke, but thrust that idea aside instantly. He could do this himself without the stumbling help of a Niwa. The kid's heart was in the right place, but without Dark to guide him he was almost hopeless, and including Dark would inevitably bring out Krad.

No. He was better off alone, just as he'd always been.

**Just to let you guys know, you don't have to remind me to update. I know that. It's the reason I started writing: to finish. Anyway, of the five or so artworks mentioned in Satoshi's collection (I'm sure he has many more in storage somewhere) only two are really important. It's up to you to figure out which ones! And out of curiosity, what do the names make you think of? What do you think they'd look like or do?**


	8. Ceremony

**Fine. Asking isn't really working, so I'll just have to bribe people. I know more of you are reading my story than are reviewing. If you give me a nice thoughtful comment at least, I'll be sure and write a thank-you chapter and your name will be in it, okay? The more reviews you give me, the more kudos you get. Got it?  
(I just hope a list of names isn't too boring for you guys. I'll try to make it interesting.)**

**Chapter 8: Ceremony**

Imbri opened her eyes and then shut them again wishing she hadn't. The light, though dim, gave her a splitting headache. She tried to move her hands, but found them bound behind her back. Cold stone surrounded her, leeching all warmth from her body. A shadow fell across her face and she squinted up, recognizing a pair of half-folded wings.

"Dark?" Hope filled her breast.

But the face above her clouded over at the name. "I should have known he already had you on a leash."

Hope was replaced by hostility. She recognized his cold voice from the museum, but had no name to put to him. Instead she simply said, "_**You.**_"

"Dear Imbri, you may call me Krad." He bowed slightly and she thought he was mocking her.

"Demon!" she spat, wishing she had her armor and _andora_. "Where am I?"

"A tomb. This is the only place I could be sure of true privacy."

The small chamber was lit by three twisted candles, which let off strange yellow smoke. An ominous feeling filled the place.

She tested the straps fastening her hands securely to the stone wall. They didn't break under the pressure and the knightess could only wonder what they were made from. Normal bonds had always snapped easily for her.

Then her eyes fell on a limp figure several feet away. Shock and disbelief shone unmasked on her face.

"What are you doing with Risa? Your argument is with me!"

But Krad ignored her plea saying, "The only reason you're awake now is because I need to hear your voice before I free you from the curse."

"What curse? I'm not cursed," the black-haired girl objected with confusion.

"Oh, really?" His finger pressed against the pendant hanging on its chain below her throat: a silver horse with wings rearing on its hind legs. "The Pegasus, born from the blood of a monster. Wild and untamable except under the power of a golden harness…like someone I know."

Krad's hand softly traveled from her collarbone up to her neck and then stroked her chin affectionately. Pure hatred filled her eyes and she jerked forward, snapping her teeth onto his hand with a savage twist. But the white angel merely used a finger of his other hand to press a nerve in her neck, making her jaw go painfully numb.

He stared with curious interest at the blood on his hand. "Harm this vessel all you want. It makes no difference to me. But I suppose I should have expected that sort of response since your true feelings are barred from you. Don't worry. That will all change as soon as the ceremony is finished."

"I don't care what you do to me, but leave my friend out of this!"

He stood up straight, looking down at her with a raised eyebrow. "I was under the impression that you had no friends."

"I don't!" she yelled through clenched teeth.

"There is no cause for concern. After today she will be unable to have any friends as well."

Imbri fell back with a gasp, feeling the cold stone flat against her back. "You're going to _kill_ her?"

His words were heartless. "She will be sacrificed for your freedom."

"_Hakai sin rakos!_ " she cursed in her native language and strained at the straps. Black hair fell across her eyes as she leaned forward, obscuring half her vision. "You filthy, maggot-eating barbarian! _Why?_"

The neck of her shirt twisted as she struggled until it exposed her shoulder. Krad approached her, looking appraisingly at the bare skin, at which point she became acutely aware of what he must be thinking. One hand reached out to touch the fabric and she thought for sure that he would yank it down to further humiliate her in her helplessness…but instead he tugged it back up where it belonged.

"Because I value your life above hers."

Imbri was still shocked at his gesture to preserve her modesty.

"But when we fought over the Rose you had every intention of killing me! You cared nothing for my life and would gladly have ended it if you hadn't considered it beneath you to murder me. You didn't care!" She stopped, realization dawning and her voice grew faint. "You…you _care_ for me?"

Krad stared at her, no brashness or superiority in his countenance. "My feelings have changed since our last meeting. You are the one creature I've ever admired and my only desire is to be with you."

She squared her shoulders haughtily and continued to glare. "Do you expect me to be flattered by this confession?"

"It's already too late to turn back. When this connects," he motioned to an arrow split in half, "your curse will have no power over you any longer."

"I keep telling you it's not a curse! Why aren't you listening to me?"

He held up two manacles linked by a strand so thin that it looked like spidersilk. "This is called the Snaring Chain. I prefer to think of it as my golden harness, though. Once you wear one of these, no matter where you go, I will be able to follow. The one who placed them there is the only one who can remove them. They were discovered on a pair of skeletons buried together. Fascinating, is it not?"

"You may love me, but there could never be any feelings on my part other than hatred. _Especially_ if you sacrifice Risa."

"Once you're free you may have a different attitude, dearest Imbri."

He pulled out a feather and she only had enough time to widen her eyes before a netting of sleep entangled her. The man with white wings knelt before her, one hand raising her limp head. He leaned so close that there was hardly space between them, and whispered,

"You will understand, my love. When next you wake, I will be able to kiss you. It is time."

He pulled out a fraying strip of cloth that hardly looked worthy of its name. The Fallen Knight's Cloak wrapped tightly around the necklace to prevent it from hindering the ceremony about to take place. Its power was smothered beneath the folds of black material, thoroughly contained.

Then a new item was unveiled: the Harmony of Souls. Krad placed one of his white feathers on the harp made from black ivory and it absorbed the magic. Sweet, sad music began to play, filling the enclosure and stirring thoughts of gladness in the angel whose life had been nothing but revenge and destruction since his creation.

The broken arrow of the Archer's Secret began to glow in Krad's hands as he invoked its magic. All of the artifacts in the tomb fought against each other until he directed their energies through himself.

If he could just do this quickly, then there would be no chance for interference from his weaker half.

Or Dark.

(X)

Daisuke was dismayed as he listened to Riku sobbing on the other end of the phone. "—and I just left the room for a moment and when I came back Risa and Imbri were gone! The window was smashed and the poker by the fireplace was bent, but I never heard a sound!"

"Wait right there," he told her. "I'll be over in—_uh!_" He nearly crashed into the table from Dark's mental shove.

_There's no time to waste consoling your girlfriend, Daisuke! We've got to go look for Imbri!_

_But what about Miss Riku? I can't just let her face this by herself!_

_You don't have a choice._

"Niwa? Niwa, what's wrong?" Riku wondered through her sniffles. "Is everything okay? Are you coming over?"

Daisuke tried to assure her that he would, but Dark wrenched control from him for a moment, using his host's voice to tell the twin, "If Risa and Imbri are in trouble I'd better help search for them. I'll see you later tonight, I promise. Bye."

On the other end, Riku stared at the phone confusedly. "Niwa never refers to Risa that way…"

"Dark, what's _wrong_ with you?" Daisuke yelled at the faint reflection over his own in the mirror. "I need to go see Miss Riku _now!_"

_No you don't. You'll be seeing her after we save Risa and Imbri anyway, so cool off._

"No. We're not going anywhere except the Haradas' home." He crossed his arms in finality and glared at the mirror.

There was a dangerous silence from his other half. _Daisuke…don't make me take over by force. Those two girls are in trouble. No one knew about Imbri except me, the twins, your little school-buddy, and Krad. Now which of those five would kidnap __anyone?_

Daisuke sullenly remained silent.

_Riku can wait._

The Phantom Thief switched places with his counterpart. Daisuke didn't fight much, but he sure didn't let him have his body easily. The kid could really be stubborn even when he knew he was wrong. Wiz transformed into a pair of wings and fused to Dark's back as he went out to the balcony. He paused for a moment, staring at the waxing moon that was little more than a fingernail now and sliding toward the horizon.

"Where would you take them?" he breathed.

He investigated the museum first, but there were no signs of life. Just as he was beginning a wider sweep, an aura of strong magic bloomed on the northern side of town.

"There you are!"

Wings stroking powerfully, Dark raced to reach the outskirts where the haze of magic was originating. He couldn't trace it fast enough. It swirled and circled around a cemetery, but no one was visible and it was an extensive area. Behind him, the moon had already begun to set, and as it did, the magic intensified until it had become a chaotic mess evolving rapidly into a miasma.

At least the increasing power helped Dark pinpoint its source. He narrowed in on a row of tombs and felt dark magic radiating from one of them. Darting forward, the thief tried to open the stone door, but a barrier sprang up between him and it.

He cast a shadowy feather at the closed entrance but the result was only a few sparks. Infuriated, he flew higher into the air and dozens of black pinions arced toward the building, battering the barrier until it split apart with a roar of rupturing energy and the acrid scent of burning tar.

Dark broke through the roof of the domed tomb, taking everything in at a glance. There was a diagram on the floor, circling and winding in a dizzying pattern as it glowed with an otherworldly light.

The two unconscious girls were tied to the walls, and Krad himself was floating motionless in the center of the room with closed eyes, arms outstretched. There were the broken pieces of an arrow in his hands. Ghastly, unwavering music echoed all around him centering from a black harp on the floor, its terrifying tune threatening to tear his mind away.

He knew his light half was using himself as a medium to control the combination of at least two magical artworks. Hopefully it would put enough of a strain on him that he would hardly notice Dark.

The black angel ignored his nemesis, concentrating only on saving the girls. Breaking their bonds with a feather, he seized them both and flew for the opening in the ceiling, not noticing a ragged piece of cloth detach from Imbri's necklace and flutter to the floor.

Almost to the exit, he pulled up as Krad suddenly blocked them although he was gaunt and barely able to fly.

Dark's mouth curled up in a sneer. "Get out of my way!"

"Did you really think it would be that simple to steal them?" Krad's voice quivered with rage. Outside, the crescent moon was on the brink of vanishing. "It's too soon, but it must be done!" he shouted, connecting the arrow.

They fused together with a flash of black light that threw both men apart. Imbri and Risa screamed with one voice that echoed loudly in the enclosed space. He cringed and tried to block it out. A slight pulse leaked out of the pendant but no one observed it. After several severe moments the girls' voices dwindled away and they grew limp again.

There was such a sudden silence that it took the Phantom Thief a few seconds to puzzle out what had changed. Then it struck him: the Harmony of Souls no longer played.

Uniting the arrow seemed to drain every bit of energy Krad retained and he pitched to the floor of the tomb. Silently Daisuke hoped Satoshi was all right. They left through the opening and slipped away into the night.

The white angel lay on the floor, regretting the fact that being a medium affected him alone rather than his host. Too bad. The fool might have finally given up fighting back if he'd used enough power to subdue him.

He watched his enemy carry away the only person he'd ever had feelings for…but then gave a quick smile. One hand touched the manacle on his wrist, feeling the strand as thin and invisible as a thought tug slightly while distance grew between the links.

"You may take her from me, Dark Mousy…but my golden harness remains."

**Imbri's curse **_**hakai sin rakos**_** literally translated means "glutton of filth" … 'filth' being a rough word that encompasses the most disgusting stuff you can imagine and then a few other things you can't imagine. Let's just say she called Krad a "crap-eater" and leave it at that.**


	9. New Scenery

**Ah, now you find out what Krad was trying to do!**

**Chapter 9: New Scenery**

Riku stared blankly at the stars, guilt and grief overwhelming her. She still had no idea how the window could have broken without her hearing a single sound. Suspicions of magic drifted in and out of her thoughts, but she refused to dwell on them for long.

And yet…what other explanation was there?

She turned as Dark alighted nearby and hurried over to him. The girls were in his arms, but dangling like stringless marionettes. "Are they all right? Where did you find them? What happened?"

"I think they're okay. Just unconscious."

A drop of sweat maddeningly trickled between his eyes where he couldn't wipe it away without dropping his burdens. Of course, he shouldn't be complaining since that was the worst that the evening's excitement had affected him. The amount of magic was considerable compared to usual, though. Daisuke was probably going to hate him once it took its toll.

"Who took them?"

Dark didn't answer. Instead he went inside to set the girls down on Risa's bed. "I'm not sure exactly what happened back there yet. There was too much magical energy for it to be a simple ceremony. Whatever he was doing—"

"He? Who he? He who?" Riku interrupted, her eyes flaring with impatience as she tried to get an answer out of him. "Just tell me who kidnapped my sister and tried to use magic on her or whatever! _Now._"

Imbri groaned and shifted, attracting their attention instantly. Dark was at her side, leaning over with concern. "Are you all right?"

Her brown eyes slid open and she blinked confusedly up at him. "Mr. Dark?"

He jerked back in surprise at the title. The pendant on her chest pulsated with red light for a second or two before slowly dying away, but the raven-haired girl winced and looked down to look at it. She raised a hand to touch it and promptly socked herself in the jaw, producing a surprised yelp.

The sight of Imbri punching herself _was_ rather funny, but the reason wasn't.

Dark squinted and edged forward slightly. "Risa?"

She looked at him, holding a hand to her sore chin. "Yeah?"

Riku got between them and grabbed the girl's shoulders, looking her straight in the face. "Is that really you, Risa? Are you really…"

She carefully lowered her hand and her face screwed up with perplexity. "Really _what?_ What's wrong with my body? It feels all…watery. And my voice sounds funny. Am I sick?"

"Worse than that, I'm afraid," Dark said picking up a hand mirror. He held it up for her and she gasped, jerking so hard that the back of her skull hit the headboard and cracked straight through it! Riku jumped forward and pulled her out of the hole.

"Risa! Are you okay?" Her sister tried to check her head, but Risa nudged her away gently (which actually amounted to a hard shove by accident).

"Oh, sorry! But…it doesn't hurt at all," she remarked in wonderment. "That thing's supposed to be solid oak."

"It _was_. Not so solid anymore," her sister said sarcastically. "At least it's _your _bed."

"Well I didn't do it on purpose! Mr. Dark, I—Mr. Dark?" She looked around and saw him cradling her own body on the other side of the bed. "Hey, that's _me!_ But if…if I'm in Imbri's body, is she in mine?"

"I think so," he replied in a murmur.

"But how did we get switched?"

"He doesn't know, or at least he pretends not to," Riku informed her. The short-haired twin glanced between her sister and her sister's body. "Do you remember anything at all? What happened downstairs?"

Risa's eyebrows creased as she concentrated. "We were sitting in the room after you left to get sodas and then the window broke. Imbri jumped up and grabbed something near the fireplace. She threw it at—"

A look of sheer horror crossed her face and she pointed to the open window. "_**You!**_" she screamed.

Riku and Dark both snapped around—but no one was there.

Yet Risa continued to point, her hand trembling. Slowly her fearful eyes returned to their normal size and she looked down at her hand as though wondering why she was holding it out.

"That was weird. I thought for a second I saw that guy… Totally freaky." She shook her head and raised her eyes, realizing with amazement that Dark was right in front of her, staring intently.

"Eep!" she squeaked (which was interesting to hear coming from Imbri's mouth). "Mr.…Dark? What's wrong?"

"I thought so. There's a cloud hiding some of your memories. Risa, I'm going to help you remember. Look at straight at me." He held a feather out and it glowed as he muttered foreign words. Risa's clear brown eyes slowly changed to a muted amber.

"What are you _doing?_" Riku demanded, coming protectively between them.

"Nothing that will hurt her. Someone blocked out something she knows for a reason and I need to find out why. So just calm down and let me do this without any distractions."

"If you hurt her even a little bit I'll make you regret the day you were born!" she threatened in a low voice.

"Fine." He pushed the girl carelessly aside and focused on Risa again. "Krad is at your window. What next?"

"He is carrying me outside, over the ocean." Her voice was distant, emotionless. The high pitch was gone and her tone had turned abruptly flat, spiritless.

"What does he say?"

"If you scream I'll make sure you drown."

Despite it being Imbri's voice, her tone and expression were exactly like Krad's. Dark knew she wasn't remembering or repeating it. In her mind it was happening right then as if she was living the moment for the very first time.

"Tell me everything."

Risa's expression changed dramatically over the next few minutes. She thrashed in the 'water' as herself, then coldly made threats as Krad. Riku stood nearby, her face filled with disbelief as she finally understood what had happened the night she'd found her sister soaked in seawater on the balcony.

"—Still…you might prove useful. None of this ever happened."

As though a light switch went on, Risa's eyes suddenly cleared and she looked at Dark. "Help me remember what?" she wondered quizzically.

He didn't answer. All his attention had already turned back to Imbri who was still unconscious. Riku lowered her eyes slightly and decided that Dark was right for once: Risa would be much better off without that memory.

"Don't worry about it, Risa." The elder twin walked over to the Thief and shook the unconscious girl's shoulder. There was no response. "Why isn't she awake yet? Risa is."

"Risa's body isn't as strong or resilient as Imbri's. Haven't you noticed she doesn't have any scars despite all the battles she's been in? She's also more resistant to magic. In a weaker body like this, I doubt she'll wake up tonight." He straightened with a heavy sigh. His black wings opened slightly, giving off the pungent smell of something akin to gunpowder. "It's time for me to go anyway."

He left without another word.

The twins stared at each other and kept darting nervous glances at the prone figure beside Risa on the bed. They were still in the same places when the phone rang loud enough to wake up a corpse. Riku answered with a (somewhat) steady voice.

"Yes?"

"Miss Riku, I—I wasn't much help finding your sister or your cousin."

"It's all right, Niwa. Someone found them a little while ago and brought them home. They're…they're just fine."

"Oh good." Daisuke sounded breathless and he coughed.

"You sound terrible. Are you getting sick?"

"No, I've just been doing a lot of running around."

"Well, you need to get some rest, and it's really too late for you to come over now. You shouldn't be awake after midnight."

"Neither should you," the redhead admonished teasingly.

"I guess that's my cue to go to bed," she smiled a bit. "I'll see you tomorrow at school, okay?"

"Okay. Sweet dreams, Miss Riku."

"Thanks. You too, Niwa." She hung up and gave a pained sigh. Looking over at Risa she said, "I can't believe I couldn't give him the truth. I couldn't even tell him it was Dark who saved the two of you from...from _whoever!_"

Her sister was hardly paying attention. She was too involved with her new fingernails. "I can't believe she can bear to look at these day after day. Hasn't she _ever_ heard of cuticle care? I'm scared to take off my shoes! Excuse me while I take a shower."

Risa stood up and headed for the door, but reached it in half the steps it would have taken in her own body. As it was, her face made a very clear imprint on the wall.

"Try not to break the shower, sis."

"Whatever," she muttered irritably. "Hey, where am I sleeping? There's no way I'm letting her nasty body sleep in my bed!"

Riku rubbed her temples slowly to relieve the aching. Why did she _always_ have to be the big sister? "You can sleep in my room. But if you snore or drool on my pillows, you're out!"

(X)

Morning still hadn't quite lightened the sky when Imbri awoke. She knew something was wrong before she even opened her eyes. Every bone in her body screamed for more rest and her limbs felt as though millstones were dragging them down. Creaking open her eyelids, she knew she was safely at the Haradas', but not in Riku's room, which immediately put her on guard.

No, wait…where was her _emblem?_

She darted out of the bed and tried to stand up, but gravity pulled so heavily on her that she hit the floor instantly. Still panicking, the knightess forced herself to her feet and stumbled over to the mirror hanging from the wall.

Imbri stared at herself in the full-length mirror, her mouth hanging partly open in utter shock. Risa's light brown hair hung infuriatingly beside her face. She threw it back with a snarl and seized the nearest object, overcome with confusion and psychotic rage.

The twins woke to the sound of breaking glass and rushed into the room. Imbri was holding a brass vase (no longer filled with flowers) over the shattered remains of Risa's mirror.

She looked up and saw herself standing in the doorway, then went insane. Throwing herself on top of Risa, she tackled her into the hallway and began scrabbling for the necklace.

"It's mine! Give it back!"

"Imbri, stop it!" Riku grabbed her sister's body (and the stranger inside it) around the waist and yanked her off. "This isn't her fault! That's _Risa!_"

Imbri fell back, seemingly drained of all strength. She breathed hard leaning against the wall for a few moments and shamefully looked up at her friends.

"I can't remember ever being without it. Forgive me. I acted on instinct."

"It's okay," Risa coughed, rubbing her throat where the yanked chain had almost choked her.

She sagged back, but raised her head wearily up to stare in shock at her own body. "Wait…I don't understand! That man said you would be sacrificed. Why are you still alive when he told me your life was unimportant to him?"

The girl with raven-dark hair shrugged. "Maybe he messed up. Personally, I like the fact that I'm not dead. Hey, I'm a lot stronger in your body. Do you think I'll be able to use your weapon?"

Imbri's eyes went wide. "My _andora!_"

She rose to her leaden feet and lurched past them into Riku's room. Her alarm abated and she breathed a sigh of relief when she saw it against the wall. Stroking its length fondly, she took it into her hand—or tried to.

Surprise crossed her face and she seized it with both hands, struggling to lift it. Finally it moved, but she wasn't strong enough to support it and both of them fell to the floor. It clunked heavily beside her, nearly smashing the brown-haired girl's fingers. She stared at it with a countenance of betrayal.

Her eyes turned up to see Riku and Risa standing silently in the doorway. With a piteous glance at Imbri, the younger twin entered and lifted the _andora_ with little effort. Tears shone in Imbri's eyes as she watched Risa replace it.

"This is the most grievous blow of all…that my _andora_ would recognize you as its master even though I am here." The knightess bowed her head slowly and took several deep breaths. Her hands finally unclenched and she seemed to put the upsetting event behind her.

"How did we return? I know that man wouldn't have let me go if he'd had a choice."

The twins exchanged an unreadable look. "Dark brought us home."

"_Dark?!_ " She sounded dismayed.

Risa nodded. "He rescued us…but I guess not soon enough. He didn't say much, but I think he's going to look into getting us into our right bodies. Until he comes back with a solution, I'm pretty sure we'll be stuck like this."

"I suppose I'd best try to adjust," Imbri said raising one heavy arm.

She tried to occupy her attention with something else to distract her from uncomfortable thoughts concerning the thief. But still, she couldn't help thinking about him and his dark wings.

It took her some time to get used to her new weakness. Both she and Risa couldn't seem to catch on, but their attempts were genuine. Riku was only glad that Mr. Tsubouchi wouldn't arrive with the limo until 7:45.

"Well," Imbri noted at one point, "luckily I learned your language before we switched. Without my necklace I'd hardly be able to understand anything you're saying."

"You mean I can understand any language as long as I'm wearing this?" the other girl eyed the pendant curiously. "Neato!"

Just then a clock downstairs chimed and the Harada girls both snapped their heads up. "School!"

Risa flinched, looking down at herself. "This is _not_ going to work. _Yeep!_ I have to attend gym today or else I fail!" Her eyes flickered toward her real body.

"Yes, I will take your place," Imbri nodded with little enthusiasm. "It's the least I can do to make up for my reckless behavior this morning."

"You're a life-saver! Like the candy, but better."

**Small tribute to my adorable little sister there. Sadly I won't have Imbri do anything too exciting at school since she's the type who doesn't like attention (you wouldn't either if everybody you met wanted to hunt you down). Then again, when she gets distracted she tends to forget what's around her...so maybe she'll do something Risa ****definitely**** wouldn't do.  
Remember, peoples, review and get your name in a special chapter!**


	10. Confrontation

**Apparently the alert for my last chapter didn't go out since I got a total of 2 reviews for it. Read that first or this one will be a bit confusing. I think some of you are lucky. You get both chapters at once.**

**Chapter 10: Confrontation**

Mr. Tsubouchi dropped the girls off at school, though he wondered at their unusual silence.

Imbri found it intimidating with so many strange people waving and calling to her but Riku's presence made it bearable. She'd never been greeted this way as a knightess. The students were so casual and flippant as they passed, friendly faces everywhere.

Was this what it truly felt like to be ordinary?

They made their way to the homeroom. As they walked side by side, Riku glanced sidelong at her companion. Despite the ordeal last night and that morning, everything that happened back at the mansion seemed surreal, like a strange dream she'd woken from as soon as school came into sight. She just found it difficult to see Imbri as anyone other than her sister.

"Riku!" one of the other girls in class called, coming up with an armload of papers. "You're supposed to help me take these to the office."

"Sure. Risa, are you going to be okay by yourself?"

Imbri glanced up at her with an impassive look. "After dealing with barbarians, wizards, wyverns, and winged thieves this should be simple."

Riku looked around at the room that was beginning to fill with students. She felt more like a big sister than ever. "Your voice needs to be higher, and you should act very…enthusiastic about everything. You're popular, so be nice. And don't mention those kind of things."

"I'll do my best."

Once she left, Imbri went through the desk she had sat down in. There was a small notebook tucked away and she absently flipped through it. A couple pictures of someone with blue hair caught her eye. She wondered who he was and why Risa kept images of him so close.

"Hey, Harada." A boy with a very nosy aura strode over and leaned against her desk with an amount of familiarity that annoyed the knightess. "Guess what? I got another lead on Dark. He's supposed to be stealing something in a couple nights. My pops got the warning letter well in advance, so protecting the artwork should be easy."

Imbri gave him her full attention so that she could tell him something that would normally be impolite, but then Riku's advice echoed in her head: she had to be enthusiastic and friendly.

"Oh how wonderful! Please tell me more." She tilted her head to one side curiously. Her true feelings were quite a different story, but she attempted to suppress them.

"Nuh uh! You're not getting it _that_ easy. I require a little payment the same way a real journalist would. Let's say…a kiss."

"Not interested." Her voice turned uncharacteristically tart. The sly, crafty smile on his face was wiped clean by Imbri's solid fist.

Daisuke entered the room just as Takeshi flew backward and he stared in shock at Risa/Imbri.

_What is she __**doing**__ here? _Dark clamored. _She should be back at the Haradas' home!_

_Well, at least we know she's all right. I can't say as much for Takeshi._

Daisuke wasn't the only one staring at Imbri. All activity in the classroom ceased and the students gaped at her. The redhead quickly went over.

"Miss Harada, what did he do?"

"I didn't do squat!" Takeshi protested from the floor. "She socked me for no reason! _Aaawwww!_ I think my jaw's broken!"

"Oops," 'Risa' said mockingly in a high tone. "It was an accident."

He staggered to his feet and limped off to the nurse's office, complaining to everyone he met. Imbri sat at the desk ignoring all the stares of her fellow students. Instead she focused on her hand which was hurting, strangely enough.

"Ow," she noted with surprise, flexing it. "Frail little thing."

The last time she'd injured it was when she'd faced a giant earthsnake years ago. It had ambushed her and spat acid onto her hand in an attempt to maim her. Knightesses were taught to be ambidextrous and the _andora_ was just as deadly in her left hand. The amount of pain from the poison was about the same as a simple strike to someone's jawbone.

Then she realized that Daisuke was still staring at her. Folding her hands neatly on the desk, the girl with long, brown hair gave him a questioning look.

"May I do something for you?"

"N-no! I just—sorry." Red-faced, he retreated and sat down. Dark was still yammering and it was giving him a headache.

_Neither of us can do anything about her in front of anybody right now, so why are you shouting? _he reasoned. _I'm sure she'll be fine, otherwise she wouldn't be here at all._

_Oh really? How long was she here before she punched your buddy?_

_Point taken. But how am I going to get her to leave if she's supposed to be Miss Harada? I'd never ask her to skip school!_

_She can't stay here._

_Of course not. I'll bet I can talk to her during lunch and get her to go home. It's only a few hours away. All she has to do is keep quiet._

_Why do I get the feeling that somehow it'll never be quite that simple with Imbri?_

Daisuke started to get a bit disconcerted as Imbri's eyes continued to follow him. She said nothing, but she stared as though trying to see through him. He pretended not to notice, but her steadfast gaze made his hair stand on end (in a different way). Luckily the teacher came in and her attention was diverted. He began breathing normally again, surprised at his own discomfort.

First block was math, which made absolutely no sense to her and Riku had to keep writing the answers on her paper. The class eventually dissolved into geology which she was able to follow more comfortably.

At long last the kids filed out to the gym. Imbri had hardly said a word all morning after the incident with Takeshi, and trailed along behind the rest of the class.

In the dressing room Riku pointed out her uniform and then everyone met on the gym floor. The teacher had them line up in rows and begin stretching exercises. The stranger was still rather confused about the purpose of this class, but said nothing. It wasn't her place to object.

Imbri's attention wandered as she stood in the very back. This was so childish! Surely they had better things to do. Her eyes strayed to a long balancing beam and recognition lit her features. She remembered such things from her training.

The instructor's attention was elsewhere and Imbri slowly edged over to the beam. It was made from a much different material, but the concept was the same. She wondered if her new body was able to do a simple exercise she'd done as a child, before her knighthood.

Mounting the head-high beam at the very end, she tested her balance. Finding it sufficient, the girl made a slow cartwheel. On the next one she stopped halfway, doing a handstand with her legs extended in a wide V. Risa's weak arms began to shake from the unaccustomed strain, so Imbri gathered her strength in one breath. She gave a mighty shove, spinning and righting herself to land precariously on the beam with one foot.

Her adrenaline was flowing and she grinned at the rush. Perhaps Risa was stronger than she appeared.

Applause reached her ears, accompanied by a few enthusiastic whistles. Turning her head, Imbri realized the entire class had been watching. Riku wasn't smiling or clapping, however. Neither was the teacher.

"Risa, if I had known you were so anxious to distract the class, I would have set the beam up where the whole school could watch your showmanship. Get down from there _right now!_" the woman yelled, dropping the sarcasm.

She clambered down and stood at attention. The teacher tried to appear angry but Imbri could see the surprise and pride in her eyes.

"I got carried away. It won't happen again," she promised. It probably wouldn't.

In the girls' locker room, Riku and Imbri dawdled until they were the only ones left. As soon as the other girls had all gone, the elder twin turned furiously on her and exploded.

"_What was __that?_ You're lucky she didn't put you in detention! I heard about what you did to Saehara earlier, and that's enough for you to get expelled. Thank goodness he's afraid to admit a girl beat him up. You should know better, Risa!"

Imbri waited a few moments after Riku was done ranting, considering her words carefully. "Why did you just call me 'Risa'?"

The twin blinked in confusion and then remembered what she had said. "Look, I _meant_ to say your name."

"Just because I'm in her body doesn't make it easy for me. We're two different people with two different lifestyles and practically nothing in common. I can't read, nor do I understand this 'math' of yours. I realize that according to your standards I'm very uneducated, and yet because of my appearance you expect me to 'know better'. How much more do you want me to do before I fail entirely?"

The auburn-haired girl flinched visibly. "Listen, it's lunchtime in a few minutes. Go to room 328 and tell the nurse that you feel sick. She'll send you home if you insist. You attended gym class, which is all Risa wanted. I'll see you after school, okay?"

"Very well."

The school bell donged three times and all the students scattered. Imbri tried to find room 328, but since she couldn't read the numbers, just picked doors at random. One of them turned out to be the guys' restroom, though only one guy was occupying it. Takeshi was staring critically in the mirror at the bruise along his jaw. When he saw her, he freaked out and bolted to hide in a stall.

Unfortunately, he forgot to open the door first and ended up bouncing back to land on the floor in a senseless heap.

"Wrong room," she decided with a shrug.

The knightess was unable to locate it, though, and simply left. As she was passing through the gate leading off-campus, someone in the shade of a nearby building joined her. Imbri halted in astonishment.

"Dark?"

The Phantom Thief was dressed quite differently than usual in a school uniform, though she thought it unlikely that he attended there, but his mess of violet hair was unmistakable. His eyes were what attracted her attention. They were furious.

Her own anger rose to meet his. After their last meeting she's thought he would leave her alone permanently, but it seemed the pendant's reaction to their kiss wasn't enough to dissuade him.

"What are you doing here, Imbri?" he questioned, gritting his teeth. "You and Risa should be safe at home. Is she out somewhere in the city playing with your _andora?_" His voice was sarcastic.

"Don't patronize me! I'm only here because Risa asked me to come. I'm going now so you don't have to bother me. Let go!"

"I'm taking you back." He had taken her by the arm and propelled her toward the street.

"Dark, don't! I know the way and I'm not a child!" He ignored her words and hardly paid any attention to her struggles. Infuriated, she screamed, "You never listen to me! You always treat me as though I can't take care of myself!"

"If you don't want to be _treated_ like a kid then stop _acting_ like one," he snapped. They reached the other side of the street and he released her.

She glared at him, rubbing her wrist. "You have no idea what I've had to live with. I'm over a hundred years old, Dark! I used to wonder why people aged while I didn't. I've always been different, but I can't even _pretend_ to be normal! That's all I ever wanted. You don't know what it takes for me to admit that."

The Phantom Thief's expression grew disgusted. "You selfish _brat!_ All you ever think about is yourself. You say you're a hundred? I'm _four _hundred! I'm cursed too. There's no way I can ever be with any woman, which is why I've always pursued them. I keep hoping somehow I can break my curse, but I know I can't."

"What? But you kissed—"

Dark interrupted, gesturing angrily. "I couldn't be with you even if I wanted to! You're just like all the others: I was only using you, trying to find some temporary measure of happiness. And guess what." He leaned closer. "It didn't work."

Without warning Imbri's hand came up and she slapped him as hard as she could. If she'd been in her own body, it probably would have sent him sprawling, but as it was, Dark just stood over her with a red handprint etched onto his cheek, completely stoic.

"You're lying to yourself," she spat venomously. "If you didn't care at all, you wouldn't have bothered to say anything to me. At least now I can tell you the truth: there is no way that I would ever have been with you even if the world was at stake and our union was the only thing that could save it. Do you know why? _Because I __hate__ you!_"

Perhaps it was just seeing that look of pure hatred on Risa's face, but Dark blanched. For a moment he forgot Imbri. All he could see was Rika glaring out at him from those amber eyes. He jerked back so suddenly that the knightess was surprised.

"It looks like we wasted each other's time playing out this charade," he said after a short moment.

"It took you this long to figure that out? You must have really been infatuated with me, Phantom Dark." Her voice was mercilessly taunting. "Get out of my sight, _naghir_," she commanded with a sneer.

The tall man recognized the word. His eyes narrowed menacingly and his fists clenched, but he didn't say anything. Dark turned and stalked away. Her footsteps receded behind him as they separated.

He hadn't meant to lash out at her enough to prompt that sort of response. Maybe he _was_ lying, but it was for her sake. He'd never want to hurt her the way he'd hurt Rika so long ago.

Then again…it looked like the one who was wounded was himself.

"_I would rather you had never known me."_ Her words from the last night they'd spoken echoed in his head.

Imbri strode away from Dark, but as soon as she turned into an alleyway, she ran. She flew down another street and along that for a ways before changing direction again, and then again and again until she had lost all sense of direction. A sheltered corner along the side of a building became her refuge and there she fell to her knees.

No tears came to her eyes, but they wanted to and her shoulders shook with dry sobs as she struggled to keep the flood back. She could lie to him, but not to herself. Hope had been taunting her since she'd seen the Rose, but now that he had expressed his true feelings…there was no point. What was she to do now?

Lost in both mind and body, she stood and began to wander aimlessly along the foreign streets, not knowing where she went and certainly not caring.

**Have you ever thought someone really liked you, and then one day seemingly for no reason they yank your heart out and stomp on it?**


	11. Memories

**Sorry it took me so long to update. I was busy waiting for reviews. (hint hint)**

**Chapter 11: Memories**

Risa stretched her arms and yawned. The cotton between her toes tickled, but she couldn't remove it until the toenail polish dried. One by one she took the curlers out of her hair and then looked at her new face in the mirror.

Yep. Curls definitely suited Imbri much better than that ragged mess she'd had before.

This was great! She'd been wanting to get Imbri into proper clothing and give her a makeover since the alien-girl had arrived and this was the perfect opportunity. After all, she couldn't exactly object when she wasn't in control of her own body, could she? Plus gym class was taken care of. What better way for Risa to celebrate than by pampering herself?

She absentmindedly hummed along to the CD playing as the tangy smell of toenail polish prickled her nose. One hand began to fiddle with the enchanted necklace and then almost by accident her eye caught a glint of blue.

Risa's attention focused entirely on the pendant and she turned it until she found the glint again. It looked like a tiny chip of glass nestled into a crack on the Pegasus.

"Hmmm… Imbri must have gotten this at her initiation." She rubbed it with her finger as she spoke, then suddenly—

_There were four other girls her own age standing beside Imbri. They were all nervous and the faces of the ancient gods staring coldly down at them only made it worse. Candles spaced evenly around the darkened temple let off an eerie blue glow that flickered with a powerful aura._

_She shuddered and rubbed her arms prickling with gooseflesh. There was nothing more she desired than to go back to the training house with her sisters. Whatever this was, it wasn't a place she wanted to be. Why had the Elder Ones woken them in the middle of the night and brought them here?_

"_The time has come for you to choose your weapons and become true Knightesses."_

_The voice came from nowhere and the four girls with her glanced around, afraid._

_Behind them a velvet cloth covered with weapons lay serenely in the center of the chamber. One of the others stepped cautiously forward, and two more followed, but she and the last girl remained where they stood, distrustful or perhaps just frightened._

_They each chose an elaborately decorated sword or dirk from the floor. When nothing struck the forerunners down, Imbri and the last girl went up too. The other chose a bow but she stared at the remaining weapons, inspecting them closely. Her training had taught her to be skilled at all of them, but she wanted something different._

_Her keen brown eyes detected a wrinkle in the velvet that didn't fit with the apparent perfection cloaking this strange ceremony._

_Impulsively, she pulled up a corner of the cloth. She was correct: there beneath the velvet was a hidden weapon. Her fingers closed about its shaft and she dragged it out as though it weighed nothing at all. When she saw the blades at the very top, she knew she'd come into possession of the greatest weapon ever crafted for knightesses. The four other girls gasped and stared with awe._

"_Imbri! Is that…?" one of them trailed off._

"_The weapons have been chosen. Accept these and your Knighthood will be complete." The voice contained a note of pride she knew was meant for her._

_Then before her face appeared a necklace with—_

Risa fell out of the chair, landing awkwardly on the floor. The dusty-dead scent of the temple still lingered in her nostrils and the skin on her fingers felt as if she'd just been touching cool metal.

"That was… I saw everything from Imbri's eyes!" Her gaze returned to the necklace and she softly rubbed the blue gem again. "Was it hard for her being a knightess?"

_The blond knightess' fingernails dug deep into Imbri's arm and she couldn't keep from crying as she was dragged through the back door of an inn. Tears rolled down her cheeks shamelessly, but the other girl raised a hand and slapped her hard. Cheek on fire and ears ringing, she staggered but stopped weeping so loudly._

"_I told you not to get involved!" the one with frazzled gold hair shouted._

"_I didn't do anything, Adrel," she muttered, her speech slurring from the vicious strike. "We were only talking. Where's the harm in that?"_

"_I saw you. You were __**flirting**__ with him."_

_The elder one's disgust was unmistakable. Cruelly, she threw Imbri to the ground where she laid without moving._

"_Don't you understand what that emblem around your neck means? You are not available to men. Stop pretending you are. The sooner you understand that, the better. Next time you try to do something foolish, I won't stop you."_

"_I'm not a child! I can take care of myself!" she said defiantly from her place in the dirt._

"_You may be the only one of us with an _andora_, but it will be many years before you master it. As long as these girlish feelings keep surfacing, I'll still think of you as a little child. Oh, and another thing," Adrel surveyed her with contempt. "Knightesses never cry."_

"I'm not crying!"

The twin realized she was shouting hatefully up at a coat rack that ceased to be Adrel. Her eyes cleared and she put a hand to her head.

"What's going on? What _**is **_this little crystal? It keeps jumping me into Imbri's past." She pressed her thumb against it again and—

_Imbri flew through the air, hands outstretched. She caught the bar, but her sweaty palms lost their grip. Landing lightly seven feet below, she inhaled roughly and tried to stand up straight, but exhaustion was taking its toll on her. The breaths made her throat raw and the strong, potent scent of _sharrow_ sap didn't help._

"_Jump, you sluggard!" a young-seeming woman with an aura of authority about her yelled. She gestured wildly at the bar of metal and the scaffold five feet above that._

"_I'm trying, Teacher!" Tears stung Imbri's eyes, but she rubbed them away._

"_If you were really trying, you'd have made it by now. Your muscles don't develop on their own. The emblem only gives you the ability to reach higher strength. You still have to work at it. Now let me see you get to that platform. Once you do, I'll consider today's training done."_

_The raven-haired girl's head shot up and a new incentive gave her the energy to try one last time._

_Breaking into a run, she vaulted off a plank and caught the bar again. This time she used her entire hand rather than just the fingers, and the metal grew slick beneath her perspiring skin. The momentum kept her going and she used it to circle the bar once all the way around and then soar upward toward the—_

Risa realized she was flying a split second before she met the weathervane.

Crashing into it didn't hurt, but getting out of the fix was the real problem. The metal tore her clothes as she extricated herself, and then the curly-haired girl wasn't sure what to do with the mangled instrument. Hoping no one was watching, she drew back her arm and pitched it hard as she could over the cliff.

It landed in the surf a hundred yards away. Whoa! She really was strong!

"Hey…how did I get up here on the roof?" Confused by the strange visions, Risa sat down.

What was it all about? Imbri's initiation? Flirting? Exercising?

(X)

Every artifact stolen from Satoshi's private hoard had been recovered except for the Snaring Chain. When he'd asked his other half where it was, Krad's voice was nothing more than a muted buzz he couldn't quite make out, but even that sounded mocking. He was suffering from all the energy he'd used the night before and hopefully it would take a long while for him to recover.

The art piece that bothered him the most was the Archer's Secret. The arrow had been fused together somehow, though there was still the shadow of a crack in the center. Satoshi set it on his bedside table to remind him to look into it later.

He began to multi-task, working his way through a pile of police paperwork while his thoughts were occupied with the mysterious ceremony Krad had nearly killed himself to complete.

As the afternoon shadows lengthened, Satoshi's eyes kept straying to the eastern windows, though he wasn't sure why. Finally just as the sun was beginning to set, he felt a foreboding sensation as though something terrible was about to happen.

Krad tried to tell him something, but it was too faint. He did manage to make out "Hurry!" before the angel's voice faded entirely.

Satoshi was surprised. It actually sounded like the arrogant parasite was concerned about something. He began to dismiss it, but Krad sent him a faint, familiar image. Instantly his hand snapped to his left wrist and he cursed his stupidity. He should have remembered that the Snaring Chain's manacles turned invisible when they were too far from each other.

He ordered his limo and told the driver to head east. He was looking for someone. He just didn't know who or why this person was wearing the second half of the Snaring Chain. His only choice was to follow the pull.

(X)

Imbri sat on a park bench on the edge of a small clearing. Evening was falling and she couldn't walk any farther. For some reason most strength had left her body and she didn't have any reason to keep on going. There were still so many things to sort through.

Three oaks grew so close that they seemed to be one tree spread their twisted branches over her head. The former knightess felt comforted beneath them because they reminded her of a place she'd visited as a child, before the world had laid impossible responsibilities on her shoulders. Even their scent of old roots and young leaves was the same.

The fond memory faded as her head pounded mercilessly. She hadn't felt weakness like this since…ever. What was wrong with Risa's body?

"Hey kid, what are you doing out here all alone?"

Imbri looked up to see a couple of scraggly guys that looked like high school dropouts staring coyly at her.

"It isn't safe for a little girl to be all by herself at night. Why don't you let us take care of you?"

Imbri wasn't worried until one of them grabbed her arm. With a practiced motion she tried to twist away, but finally realized how much strength she really had when her legs gave way beneath her weight. Real fear entered her eyes then.

"C'mon kid. We'll take you to a safe place," the first guy laughed. "Real cute."

Without warning she sank her teeth into the hand of the one gripping her arm. He jerked suddenly and punched her hard.

"_Little brat!_ " he yelled.

His buddy yanked on her hair, but she had almost blacked out from the punch and reeled backward. All her senses had gone starry and she couldn't focus on anything except her throbbing temples. The only thing that kept her sitting upright was his rough grip on Imbri's long tresses.

"_Hold it!_ Let her go right now!" a commanding voice rang out from across the clearing.

Both guys turned and saw Satoshi standing nearby, a look of intense anger on his face and a pistol in his hands. To them he was just a nerd with glasses.

"Oh look! Her friend came to rescue her!" one of them taunted.

The gun went off. The bullet impacted a trashcan several feet from them and the pair of ruffians jerked back in surprise. Apparently they hadn't expected the gun to be real.

"I_ said_ let her go," he repeated more forcefully, cocking the gun for another round. "It wouldn't bother me to shoot you both right there."

The second guy dropped Imbri and she sagged to the ground. They took off together into the park without looking back.

Satoshi clicked on the safety and put the gun into his jacket. Technically he wasn't supposed to have one because of his age, but he kept it for emergencies. He hurried over to Imbri, though the person he saw was Risa.

"What are you doing out here?" he demanded. "I don't even want to think about what those idiots were going to do to you."

'Risa' opened her eyes wide enough to see his face and then she collapsed.

"You've got to be kidding me," he muttered.

But he lifted her gently into his arms and carried her to the limo. His driver started in surprise when he saw the unconscious girl, but wordlessly helped his employer put her in the back seat.

"Take us to the Harada estate," he ordered, shutting the door.

The car started moving and Satoshi wondered what in the world Risa was doing this far from home.

As he gazed out the window, her hand suddenly clamped onto his arm with surprising strength. He turned to see her eyes wide open and staring, though he couldn't be sure what she actually saw.

"The curse! I know how to lift my curse!" her fingers loosened and the hopeful light left her eyes. "But should I? The man I love hates me…and the man I hate loves me… Love, hate? They're only names for different kinds of pain…"

She began to drift off again. Her eyes became unfocused and she leaned heavily against his shoulder.

"Miss Harada, are you all right?"

"Why…?" she asked him, though probably not aware of speaking. "Why did Krad do this to us? Risa is so weak…"

Satoshi's expression didn't change, but he looked back up at his driver. "Change of plans. Take us to my apartment."

**Now people, tell me something about yourselves. Just a little thing that's unique or annoys others or whatever. I'm just curious and I may use it in the Thank You chapter.**


	12. Breakfast

**What a nightmare! My Internet has been down for a week (stupid KTC!) and it took me forever to get this loaded (stupid dial-up!). But as for atm36's questions, as far as I know, I'm the only one who asks my fans anything other than rhetorical questions like "What do you think?" and "So that guy's a jerk, huh?" Psh! As if anyone's going to answer those! I've only ever come across one Thank You chapter in all my reading and I thought it was a cool idea, so I decided to mimic it. You'll see when it comes out. (I just hope it's not a disappointment)**

**Chapter 12: Breakfast**

Risa worked diligently in the kitchen to prepare breakfast. Mr. Tsubouchi was busy in town that morning and wouldn't be back until noon, so she'd decided to try her hand at cooking again. Delighted with herself at not burning the food, she cheerfully put the pot of steaming oatmeal on the table.

The dining room door swung open and Riku came in with a mess of bed-hair and a bad attitude. "What are you doing?"

Risa looked up and the smile froze on her face. "Imbri isn't…?"

"No," Riku snapped. "Are you trying to poison me again?"

"What? How can you say that? Riku, I worked hard and I watched it this time! Can't you just _try_ it?"

"The only way I'd eat another one of your 'masterpieces' is if you held a shiny object in front of my face and twirled it." But Risa's hurt expression made her reconsider. The elder sibling rubbed her temples and sat down, feeling she was going to regret this. "Believe me, I'm not going to spare your feelings."

"That's why I'm looking forward to letting you eat it!" she said joyfully, pouring a serving of gray-brown goo into her sister's bowl.

Riku stared at the mess for a moment before working up the courage to dip her spoon into it. Risa stood over her, looking on with apprehension and expectation. Slowly the mash made its way into her mouth. Riku almost gagged but bravely managed to swallow it.

"So, how is it?"

"Did you try it first?" her sister asked in a hoarse voice, still trying to get the lump all the way down her throat.

"Of course not! What kind of a cook would I be if I ate what I made for my sister?"

"More like your victim! I think I just swallowed cardboard."

"Well, oatmeal is supposed to be a little bit…blah."

"Risa, that stuff would have to work its way up to 'blah'! What did you use?"

"Well…uh…I don't really…remember. I was trying to make it impulsively. That's how some of my best dishes turned out."

"Yeah, the ones that didn't _kill _people. I'll have cereal." Riku stood up and retrieved a box from the pantry and a jar of milk from the fridge.

Risa sat down opposite her and stirred the ruined oatmeal absently. "Where do you think Imbri went? You said you sent her home yesterday, right?"

"Yes, at lunch. But the nurse said she didn't show up in her office. I don't know where she went after gym class. Takeshi did say something about her stalking him but I figured he was just spouting."

The younger twin sat back listlessly. "I want to be me again. It's nice being strong and everything, but I want to see my friends. There's nothing to do around the house and I have to act like Imbri around Mr. Tsubouchi. I can't do anything!"

"Don't worry. She'll show up eventually. If there's anyone who can take care of your body, it's Imbri. Hey, I've got plans tonight with Ritsuko. We're studying for the test on Tuesday so you can eat supper without me, okay?"

"Not only am I going to be bored all day long, but you won't be here until late tonight. Perfect," Risa sighed tiredly.

"Read a book."

"Don't make me laugh, Riku."

(X)

For the second time Imbri woke in her new body. She sat up quickly but groaned at once and clutched her head. The sunlight streaming through the window was so brilliant that she had to shield her face. It took a minute or so for her oversensitive eyes to adjust, then she managed to look around.

Her surroundings could easily be described as lavish. The king-size bed had satin sheets, and the furniture lining the walls reminded her of the museum somehow. The odor that accompanied old artifacts lingered here as well.

And yet, everything about the room was in disarray. The bed was unkempt, the desks overflowed with loose papers, books littered the floor, and more besides. She had her suspicions about its occupant, but—

"Do you remember what happened yesterday?" an unfamiliar voice asked.

Her eyes snapped leftward to see a boy with blue hair standing in the doorway. It disturbed her that she hadn't sensed him. She didn't answer his question. It wasn't worth replying to.

"I suppose this is your home?"

He nodded once.

"Is this your bed as well?"

"It is. I slept on the couch. When was the last time you ate or drank anything?"

"Yesterday morning."

Imbri had gone without eating for three days at a time regularly in the past and never felt any ill affects. She'd forgotten how much nourishment normal people required.

"You were weak from hunger and dehydration when I found you. I doubt you remember that I forced you to drink water when you arrived, otherwise I probably would have had to take you to the hospital. Come to the kitchen when you're ready to eat."

A wave of coldness swept into the room as he left.

The knightess needed to thank the stranger, but gratitude for his kindness was the farthest thing from her mind. There was something about his appearance, something she couldn't place. Her eyes fell on the bedside table.

A few minutes later she joined him and accepted the eggs and toast he'd made for her. She felt famished. While she ate the stranger watched, no emotion on his face. She grew more and more disconcerted by the second.

"I must thank you for saving me yestereve," she finally said, resenting the fact that she had to be saved, "and your hospitality was more than I could have expected. But this silence and your staring are beginning to border on rudeness. You haven't even told me your name."

"Neither have you. You look like Miss Harada, but you're not," he replied simply.

She narrowed her eyes and observed him carefully. Finally she realized what it was about him that bothered her. "You know who I am. As a matter of fact, you're the one responsible for my possession of this body."

Satoshi didn't bat an eye, but he leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms as though amused. "Oh really? Would you care to state your reasons for such a claim?"

"I only have one, and it's right there on your wrist."

The blue-haired teenager flicked his gaze downward. Foolish. He should have remembered. He could see the other part of the Snaring Chain her wrist as well, visible now that the two pieces were so close. Outwardly he refused to reveal his annoyance.

"I see. Unfortunately, you're still talking to the wrong person."

"I suspected as much," she nodded. "When I saw that redheaded youth yesterday I noticed an unnatural shadow about him. I see the same with you. Dark is a part of him as Krad is a part of you."

Satoshi wasn't interested in explaining the role of Tamers to her. "Do you expect me to pass on a message?"

She ignored his sarcastic question. "He'll hear what I have to say whether he is in the forefront or you are. I want him to meet me tonight near the broken belltower. Just before dusk; no sooner. There's something very important I must discuss with him. I know he'll come."

Without another word she rose from the table and left through the front door. Every movement belied the fact that she'd been almost too weak to stand the night before. Satoshi felt Krad shift in the back of his mind. He was surprised at the amount of strength the white angel had recovered.

The boy idly readjusted his glasses and went back to his room with a heavy sigh. As he stood there, his brow creased and the feeling that something was missing entered his mind. It took him a few moments to realize that his nightstand was empty.

The Archer's Secret was gone.

(X)

"So weird…"

Risa sat on the roof looking over the crystal blue sea. She had been pondering Imbri's past for the last hour or so and still hadn't come to understand the other.

The girl at that initiation was so different from the one she knew now.

"Imbri said her sisters were all gone. How did that happen?" Her fingers reached up to touch the Memory Crystal in the pendant of a Pegasus.

"_Males can't be knights."_

"_I'll do anything!" the man said, one hand on his son's shoulder. "He's just as good as the girls in your training houses. Better! He beat your best trainee at the Andora Celebration."_

_The boy glared defiantly at the knightesses gathered before them. His eyes rested enviously on Imbri. Or perhaps her weapon._

_Coldness seeped through her fingers from the _andora _and she knew the decision of the gathered council should not side with the wealthy merchant and his son._

"_I object to this. Our ranks are purely female for a reason," she spoke up. "Not to mention we are all orphans. Having a family might divide loyalties."_

_Everyone turned to her and she could see the disapproval in their eyes. Being the only knightess with an _andora _made her a member of the council without question, but few thought it a wise decision and fewer still listened to her advice._

"_It has been tradition for far too long," the eldest knightess said tersely in reply. No one knew her true age, but she'd had an emblem for more than 150 years. "I believe it's time we left the path engraved long ago and welcomed new changes with open arms."_

_The weapon in Imbri's hands turned to ice so unexpectedly that she flinched. The others glared. Knightesses never showed weakness to each other and it was strictly forbidden to do so in front of civilians._

"_We can't do this. Our ancestors had reasons for their traditions. Perhaps the reasons have been lost through the ages, but I believe they meant what was best and we should keep their wishes rather than depart from them."_

_A tension so tight that it nearly choked her invaded the room. Every woman stared at her with deeper anger than before. Imbri knew part of the reason was because of the weapon she carried. If her words had been voiced by any other knightess they would have been considered thoughtfully. As it was…_

"_**This**__ from a knightess with barely half a century behind her! Sir," the eldest turned to the man, "your son is welcome at the first moonrise for his initiation. We shall celebrate a new era this night."_

_Imbri could do nothing to stop them. They banned her from the ceremony, but she went despite their commands. Unfortunately, by the time she arrived it was too late. Far too late._

_The boy's face was accented with a crimson spray of blood. A melted lump of metal on a chain was the cause._

_At Imbri's appearance, the knightesses attacked. They screamed curses and blamed her for the ceremony. Only her skills with the _andora _rescued her. That, and the entrance of the dead boy's father._

Risa became aware of time leaping in years, watching flashes of angry crowds who condemned knightesses, safe-houses burning to the earth with female warriors trapped inside, shrieking women clawing at their bare necks and writhing in pain…

The visions went on and on so quickly that the twin could hardly understand them before they were gone. She saw Imbri released from different prisons, always because of her _andora._ She was revered as the only knightess true to the Old Ways. But nowhere she turned was there warmth or welcome. Time passed until hope faded to a vague memory. As far as she knew, all the knightesses were dead and she was alone.

Uncovering her eyes, Risa found herself lying flat against the roof with hot tears on her cheeks. The Memory Crystal glinted coldly in the afternoon sunlight. All the feelings of trauma Imbri suffered from watching the deaths of her sisters over the years began to fade as soon as Risa was fully awake. She was sure her friend still felt it keenly, though.

"How did she survive being alone?" she questioned, seeking answers with a touch.

_Imbri sat up with a start. She was alone. The _andora_ lay by her side and the flickering fire sent hulking shadows to stalk the small cave. She hugged her knees and stared at those blood-red coals wrapped within their blankets of flames._

"_Gone…they're all gone… What am I even living for? I used to…I used to laugh. I used to play. I used to enjoy so many things. Is this what it means to be a knightess? To lose myself? To be alone forever? To give up everything I ever wanted? To forfeit my…__**dreams?**__ I haven't dreamt since that night, and it's been years…"_

_Tears began to fall down her cheeks but she didn't move to wipe them away._

"_Knightesses…never…cry…" she choked out._

_Despair deadened the world around her, leeching away all the colors. Even the light from the fire seemed to dim as her grief washed over it._

"_The only time I ever feel alive is when I fight. Is that what my purpose is?"_

_No answer came from the darkness. Her eyes fell on the_ andora_ and she caressed its rod like a friend. A feeling of hope stemmed from it, almost whispering to her heart:_

_There will come a time when you may laugh and sing and dance freely, but you must fulfill your duty first. One day you will be released from your oath and your emblem, and until then you must live…_

_The words that sifted through Imbri's mind touched her tenderly and she raised her eyes to the blazing constellations overhead._

"_I won't give up!" she suddenly shouted, fiery resolve rising in her breast. "I am the wielder of the last_ andora! _My own desires are nothing. I live for the people of Aeledria. It's high time I started acting like the knightess I am!"_

Risa's mind returned to her body. She was now perched on the very edge of the roof overlooking a long drop that ended in wave-washed rocks. Stumbling backward nervously, she considered what she had seen.

The phone rang inside but she ignored it. Mr. Tsubouchi would get it.

How strange that Imbri would be so sad and depressed one second, then suddenly be a fire-spitting warrior the next. Had the _andora_ really spoken to her or had it been her own thoughts trying desperately to give her something to hold onto?

Well, a living weapon was a bit of a stretch.

"Miss Imbri?"

Risa quickly slid down the sloping roof and landed with a thump on the balcony just as the door opened. Mr. Tsubouchi offered her a glass of lemonade and she took it gladly.

"The telephone was for you. Your cousin called and left a message."

"My cousin?"

"I believe her name was Andora. She asked if you could meet her on the south side of town tonight before sunset. She said you'd know where."

Risa's confused expression changed instantly as she understood Imbri's message.

**Well, you got another quick look at Imbri's past. The true reason the knightesses were all killed off was a bit more complex, but for the fic I thought this would suffice. You don't need all that boring info (besides, there would be about 5 extra chapters). Next time we'll finally start getting somewhere. Oh, and tell me if you're a girl or a guy. It's crucial and time is almost up…**


	13. Awakening

**For all who reviewed last time I gave some extra info on the knightesses. That shows y'all who read w/o leaving any comments what you're missing! In my fics the reviewers get perks.  
Oh, and it looks like w/ the exception of Dan, all my reviewers are girls. Shows you who likes the series better…and possibly why.**

**Chapter 13: Awakening**

The area surrounding the belltower had been evacuated and closed off days earlier thanks to an anonymous message sent to the police. Imbri had been concerned for the remaining people in the vicinity. She'd spoken to Risa and the girl typed up a letter, but the knightess wasn't sure exactly how she'd worded it since reading wasn't one of her skills.

()  
_You thought that little blast last week at the southern belltower was bad? Just wait a few days and that whole block will be rubble! Bwahahaha!_

_Signed,  
Someone Who Cares :-)  
_()

Well, at least it seemed to have worked. Patrol cars stationed on all the roads nearby had been more difficult to dodge without her real body, but Imbri was talented at stealth and the challenge had excited her. Now she sat on the roof of an apartment next to the broken remains of the belltower, thinking and trying to suppress more painful thoughts.

The sun was just above the horizon when a pair of white wings shaded Imbri's face. She opened her eyes and stared up at Krad. There was concern and anger in his eyes as he reached out to touch her cheek.

"Who did this?"

She flinched as the bruise below her eye throbbed at the slight pressure, waking involuntary tears. Her idiocy the night before when she'd faced the two men in the park was still a subject of much humiliation for her.

Imbri turned her head away, ashamed. "It doesn't matter."

Suddenly there was no longer any pain. One hand rose to touch her face tentatively but the bruise was gone! Her eyes darted to Krad who gave her a warm smile.

"I… Thank you." She paused, taking a deep breath before going on in a wistful tone, "I understand the ceremony now. You wanted to release me from the emblem for my sake. I never knew I was trapped."

"I did what I could."

"Risa's all right too. She's wanted to be a knightess since the beginning. You granted both our wishes and I am in your debt. How can I repay you?"

This was the perfect opportunity for Krad. He almost didn't believe it, but Imbri had risen and gazed so sincerely up at him that he had to confess.

"Give yourself to me," he whispered earnestly. "Let me show you what I _truly_ feel! I will show you how deep love can be."

"Love?" Imbri's soft cadence drifted over to him with a hint of lust. "Would you really…? It's all I've ever wanted! I'll give myself to you gladly!"

They stood still as though not quite sure what to do. Then slowly they leaned toward one another, him lowering and she turning upward.

Their lips met. They held that position for an instant and then Imbri's hands crept up to lightly touch Krad's muscled biceps. He responded to the contact by pressing closer and cautiously encircling her in his arms. He did so gently, as though frightened of hurting her.

Finally, after several long moments they parted. Krad looked down at the girl who was more than a head shorter than himself and smiled. She was leaning against his chest, eyes closed contentedly as she listened to his heartbeat.

"You may look like this other girl, but all I see is you."

"Krad…" Imbri murmured. "There is only one thing I would ever ask of you."

"Name it."

"Do you remember the night we met? I sought the Rose…but you took it. Could you return it to me?"

"I've hidden it to keep my less favorable half from taking away the object that brought us together. I'll give it to you and willingly."

"Will you bring it to me now?"

"Of course."

As Krad stepped away to spread his wings he paused and returned, embracing Imbri once again to show his affection. He cupped her chin and stared into her affectionate amber eyes before bringing his face to hers. Hands slid down her back and pulled her closer, tightening as he kissed more deeply. Wherever he touched her skin tingled in an unfamiliar yet very familiar way.

The thought crossed her mind that she was free at last.

Finally he released her, though every fiber of his being desired nothing more than to continue kissing the woman who had ensnared him: mind, body, and soul.

As soon as his white wings melted into the sunsetting sky, Imbri's knees went weak and she dropped to the ground. She spat into the dust and rubbed her mouth with the sleeve of Risa's soiled uniform.

There had been such a strange feeling when she'd kissed him. Even now that he was gone she couldn't be sure who had started the kiss: herself or Krad.

All she knew now was that she never wanted to touch him again. She had been powerless in his embrace, his emotions spilling over into her. Whatever he might have asked, she would have done without a second thought. The knightess should have known better, but there was no other way to get the Rose back.

Imbri's thoughts returned to Risa and suddenly she realized how true her words to the winged man had been. From the very beginning, the twin had voraciously listened to all of her battle tales and loved to handle her _andora_ even though she couldn't even lift it.

Well, now she could. Maybe she was better off in Imbri's body after all.

And maybe…Imbri was better off in Risa's body. Dark didn't have any feelings for her. Krad did. It would be so easy to accept the white angel's devotion and perhaps learn to love him.

She shook her head to throw the foolish thoughts aside. Where had they come from? She wasn't thinking rationally! And now was not the time to be reconsidering. The sun was already setting.

The day was over…and it was too late.

(X)

Earth's orange sun faded below the horizon, vanishing into a ocean of royal blue that darkened with its descent. An invisible beast perched atop the Azumano Museum perceived its grim purpose.

Both glaring silver eyes snapped open and a ripple traveled along its length, revealing its night-black scales. No one was about to admire the monster appearing fluidly out of thin air, and if there had been, they probably would have been killed.

Letting out an ear-splitting roar that released all its anger and pain from the loss of its master, the black wyvern threw itself into the air. Nostrils flared with the scent of its prey. The knightess was still alive. She had been nearby during its mourning.

Her scent was sharp and carried the faint aroma of milkwood trees.

(X)

The cemetery was already engulfed in growing shadows by the time Krad softly landed before a grave at the very center. He picked up a vase of flowers and plucked out the Rose disguised among them. Carelessly he dropped the arrangement and it crashed to the earth, breaking the vase and scattering the flowers about his feet.

Cupping the artifact in his hands, he took flight and allowed himself a slight smile. Imbri. The mere thought of her name evoked this feeling…

A flash of darkness was all the warning he had before a burst of energy met his back. It wasn't a strong attack; just meant to draw his attention. Hovering there just out of reach Dark surveyed his other half with fury.

"Where is she? I _know_ you have something to do with her disappearance!" A threatening feather was in his hand.

Jealousy filled Krad. There was only one person fit for Imbri and it definitely wasn't Dark. "She cares nothing for you, Thief! She revealed her true feelings to me not long ago in a very physical way."

Dark seemed to freeze in midair, but then a sneer of hatred obscured his shock. "Liar!"

Black lightning streaked from him but Krad was ready now and met the attack with his own. An explosion of shattered light blinded them both and then they collided. Each seized the other's wrists and struggled to gain control. Their wings created a hurricane as they beat against each other.

"You touch her again and I'll kill you!"

"She's already made her choice," the white angel leered. "Me."

Dark freed one hand and thrust it into Krad's face so that a powerful burst of energy threw him to the ground. He landed senselessly at the base of a gravestone. The Phantom Thief hovered over him, a ball of glowing energy forming in his palm as the last rays of sunlight vanished.

A roar echoed from the center of town. Dark's brow creased and he turned away from his opponent. It struck him an instant later why the sound was so familiar.

"Oh no…it's been two weeks!"

Not bothering to look back at his other half, he sped away. Krad sat up slowly and smirked to himself. The dragon would be after that bratty twin instead of Imbri. Dark could fight the mythical beast for all he cared. As long as his only love was safe he—

A sudden sense of danger enveloped the angel and he grasped the invisible manacle on his wrist. The Snaring Chain was never wrong.

Something was about to happen to Imbri!

(X)

Risa couldn't ride the tram since she was carrying Imbri's _andora_. She had already tried and a man at the gate tried to take it from her. He said something about little girls playing with fire and then Risa yanked it out of his grasp, pushed past him and ran.

Although once again she'd forgotten how strong she was. The man had practically flown backward when she shoved him out of her way and if the person behind her in line hadn't ducked, he'd be short a head because of her reckless swinging with the weapon.

Needless to say, she kept to the shadows after that. The sun had set some minutes ago and she'd finally caught sight of the broken spire ahead. The rubble of the belltower had finally been cleared, but reconstruction still hadn't begun. Not even on the surrounding buildings. It looked like her little note worked: everyone in the vicinity had been evacuated.

She was just turning down the right street when a warning coldness emanated from the _andora_. An inner sense told her to look up and when she did there was a pair of silver eyes descending on black wings from the the darkening heavens.

Risa screamed. Panic overwhelmed her and she darted into an alleyway. The dragon flared its leathery wings, landing with an earthshaking thump on the cement. Its horned head fit into the narrow alley, but little else could. Its quarry was already out of reach, but even as the wyvern stared at the fleeing figure streaking away, flames kindled deep in its throat.

Risa heard the monster set down but didn't slow. Imbri hadn't told her exactly how big the thing was! There was the wheezing intake of breath behind her and suddenly the twin remembered what her friend had said about the wyvern's most deadly weapon.

A blast of heat built at her back and Risa dove on the far side of a dumpster. She pressed herself facefirst against the wall, crying out in terror as an inferno raged mere feet from her body. It was so intense that she felt as though a solid wave of blistering pain had encased her.

The searing light died away and Risa slowly opened her eyes. She expected to see her blackened skin sizzling, but to her surprise it didn't even seem to be burned! She still felt like a roast chicken, but after a few moments even that discomfort began to fade.

An agitated roar echoed down the alley. Gripping the _andora_ tightly, she peered around the edge of the dumpster and saw the wyvern thrashing. Its horned head had gotten trapped in the narrow opening and it could go neither forward or backward.

"Risa! _Risa!_" someone in the opposite direction of the big lizard called.

"That's my voice!" she realized. Turning her back on the struggling monster, she darted down the alley. At the other end she tried to orient herself and pinpoint the source of the call.

"Risa, over here! Try looking up."

She raised her eyes and caught sight of her own familiar profile leaning over the edge of a building.

"Get up here now! The wyvern won't be stuck there much longer."

Risa ran as fast as she could and then used the _andora_ to pole-vault up to the fire escape. It took her half a minute to reach the top. Imbri watched, impressed by the twin's ingenuity.

"Where did you learn to do that?"

Risa raised the pendant and the Memory Crystal embedded in its enchanted metal. "From you."

Imbri's eyes widened and she seemed suddenly embarrassed. "I would ask what you witnessed, but there's no time left. We have to switch bodies quickly."

"How? I thought Mr. Dark was the only one who could fix us."

"Of course not! He—" the knightess halted abruptly and stared at Risa, stunned. "What did you do to my hair? And why on earth are you wearing those clothes? I can't fight in a dress!"

"What happened to my school uniform?" Risa retorted. "What did you do? Go mudding in a four-wheeler while you were being attacked by dogs? I doubt I can even salvage any of it!"

"There's no time for bickering. I can't lift my _andora_ so you'll have to do this for me." She pulled a white-fletched arrow out and placed it on the ground. "I've cracked diamonds with it. This should be no trouble at all."

Risa hefted the weapon in her hands and brought it down squarely on the magical artifact. There was a resounding metallic crack and both girls flinched as it seemed to fracture inside their heads as well. Imbri dropped to her knees as her temples pounded mercilessly, stifling a pained grunt only halfway.

Clutching her head, she raised her eyes and looked at her friend. A similar expression covered Risa's face, but she also looked upset. "It didn't work."

The girl dressed in a ragged school uniform forced herself to stand. The only thing the _andora_ had done was widen the crack in the Archer's Secret. She shook her head in disbelief.

"It's never failed me… You have to try again, Risa!"

"I can't."

"This is no time for you to be scared of pain. It hurt me too, but we need to break this in order to get back into our own bodies. Do you understand?"

There was a triumphant roar and Imbri knew the wyvern had freed itself.

"I'm not talking about that. I mean I can't break it because I can't use your _andora_. It's been getting heavier all day, and now it's just too much. And…I'm tired all of a sudden."

The weapon had fallen beside the arrow and Risa's attempts to lift it resulted in nothing but failure. The knightess ran a hand down her sweaty face. What now?

Darker than emptiness, the wyvern swooped down onto the roof. Both girls leaped aside as it landed nearly on top of them. A flick of its barbed tail sliced through part of the cement railing as if there'd been nothing at all there.

Risa finally got a look at the whole beast and fell back with a strangled scream. She froze completely and it seemed to laugh at her. The head reared back and there was a whistling noise as it breathed inward.

Imbri seized Risa by the arm and yelled her name, but the dark-haired girl stared straight through her.

There was no time for this! Imbri raised a hand and slapped her friend with all her strength. The girl's brown eyes came into focus suddenly.

"Run! Get out of here!"

Shoving her, the knightess turned back to face the looming threat. Too late she realized she'd acted without thinking. She had no protection and it would have no qualms about killing her.

**Ah, don't you just love cliffies? Sorry about the semi-love scene between Imbri and Krad, but seriously how else was she supposed to trick him?  
Also, Merry Christmas everyone! Tell me one gift you'd really like. (I want anything w/ a unicorn on it!)**


	14. Deepest Sleep

**I know y'all have been looking forward to this ever since the New Year started, so here's my first submission for 2007!**

**Chapter 14: Deepest Sleep**

Fire blazed in the back of its throat and dread covered Imbri's face. The flames burst out of the wyvern's mouth like a flood to consume her. The heat seared her skin, hurt her eyes, called her toward the Abyss.

Just when it seemed she would be devoured, white wings blocked the deadly attack!

Krad's arms wrapped about her torso and abruptly she was airborne. The afterburn from staring at the flames blotted out most of her vision, but Imbri was able to look back and see the sweeping streak of dragonbreath as the winged creature pursued its moving prey: Risa. There was no place to hide on the exposed roof, though.

Another black figure appeared from the sky. Dark struck out at the beast and attracted its attention. With a single flap of wings the wyvern was in the air and soaring after him. He was agile, to be sure, but strength and speed were on his opponent's side. The aerial fight was blocked from her view as Krad turned to fly away.

"I'll take you away to a safe place," he murmured in her ear as he held her close to his chest.

But Imbri struggled in his arms, "Wait! We have to stay! I can't abandon them! Dark would never strike the killing blow."

"No!" the white angel's refusal was final. "I won't lose you. I love you more than life itself! I know you feel the same."

Bright anger burned hot in her eyes. "I feel nothing of the sort. Did you never think to question why the Rose of Eros is named so? Why do you suppose suddenly your feelings changed from scorn to passion? _You fool! _The love you feel isn't even real!"

Krad's face changed. He gazed through her as if understanding something for the first time. Then his expression hardened. White wings flapped furiously and for a moment the sky reeled dizzyingly overhead. Then suddenly Imbri felt him throw her down, her cheek scraping painfully against cement. There was a sharp jerk as he wrenched the Snaring Chain from her wrist.

He had returned her to the vulnerable rooftop.

Sitting up, she looked at the haughty man as he stared savagely down at her. "Indeed I was a fool. I sincerely hope your life is short and that your friend dies."

He dropped the Rose and crushed it beneath his foot. Krad soared away into the darkness without a backward glance. Imbri hurried over and gave a pained cry as she found it flattened beyond repair. Her fingers lifted it gently and she heaved a sigh of relief as the barest hint of magic, discernible only to one such as her, quickened her blood. Damaged, but not broken. It would still work.

An infuriated roar overhead brought her back to the present. Searching anxiously for any sign of Risa, the knightess finally caught sight of her hiding near the railing. She lay sobbing as she hunkered down among the rubble.

The brown-haired girl darted a glance at her friend, but knew that her old body's strength had lessened beyond usefulness. Imbri suddenly wondered if perhaps the attack on the Arrow had somehow begun to sap strength from Risa and give it to herself. She no longer felt as exhausted or hungry as she had earlier.

In an instant she was on her knees searching among the scattered stones and dust for her _andora_. After a few moments her fingers encountered smooth metal that sang at her touch.

Her eyes turned upward to the battle on feathered and leather wings that had been going on for some minutes. There was a deep violet flash as Dark shielded himself from a burst of flames. But the wyvern's clawed feet reached out and impacted him.

Imbri gasped as she watched him fall to the ground. The monster's bright eyes snapped toward her.

Panicking, she strained to lift the _andora_, but it stubbornly remained as heavy and unmovable as it had the day before. "Please! I need you to remember me! _I'm Imbri!_"

Her words resonated, echoing through a moment that seemed to last forever. She sensed no resistance beneath her fingers.

And then Imbri fell back, slamming into the building's rooftop. Forcing herself to sit up, she realized that she was still holding onto something. Looking down, she saw a blade of her _andora_ in each hand while the bare shaft laid where it had fallen. At first she thought it had broken, but then she noticed the curved ridges for her fingers and realized that there was more to this weapon than she'd known.

The separate blades were light as fans and she expertly twirled them. Yes, here were weapons she could indeed use in Risa's body!

"I'll prove to you why my name means _Nightmare!_" she shouted to the beast hovering nearby. There was no indication that it even acknowledged her so she dove behind a mound of broken stone to wait for her chance.

It landed heavily on the roof, sending a shudder through the ground. Its eyes fixed on Risa and it began lumbering forward almost arrogantly. The girl screamed and hid her face, terrified out of her mind. A small figure dashed up behind and dodged beneath the tail, bringing one blade down on the wyvern's foot. It stumbled in surprise, but the single moment was all Imbri needed to vault to the spikes along its spine.

Even crouching, traveling up the back of a gigantic lizard was difficult while it twisted and trembled beneath her. She dug the points of her blades in between the scales to pull herself along and prevent falling. As she drew the blades out to continue onward, lines of dark blood slid down.

The wyvern felt its tender flesh pierced over and over, but although its neck was long, it could not reach the little creature now perched behind its head. Instead it slung about wildly to dislodge her.

Imbri felt the beast's intentions and thrust one of her _andora_ blades deep into the flesh just at the base of its skull. The wyvern roared, throwing its head back in pain and unwittingly driving the weapon deeper into itself.

If not for the weapon, the knightess would have been thrown to the earth far below. Still holding onto one blade, she managed to swing up to the flat area atop its head and seized one of the horns to keep her footing.

There!

A scale grown at an odd angle came up against the base of the wyvern's horn and the space in between them was just enough to have caught and kept the amulet that Imbri lost at the very beginning. Its thong was wedged there and as she reached down to get it, the girl suddenly realized that she couldn't let go of the horn.

Blood trickled between her fingers and Imbri's hand began to feel as if minuscule daggers were digging ever more deeply into her skin. Too late she remembered that wyvern horns were barbed with bonelike hooks nearly too small to see. She'd been protected as a knightess, but in a normal human body…

She took a hissing breath between clenched teeth and tried to pull herself free. It didn't work and she lost the other _andora _blade in the process. The pain only worsened and the winged monster's writhing movements brought her ever more anguish. Despite her attempts to repress it, a shriek ripped from her throat.

Hands gripped her waist and with a single wrench, she was torn away from the wyvern's head!

"That was really stupid!" Dark yelled as he avoided a blast of heat and flame. "Can't you keep out of trouble for one minute?"

In the sporadic fiery light, Imbri stared at her hand and was surprised to see it still attached to the rest of her. The skin had been scraped raw and blood ran down her wrist, but even though it was painful, at least she still had it. She had seen what happened to others who had done the same thing, and it was obvious that any longer and she might not have been able to get loose.

New brighter lights illuminated them suddenly, accompanied by the rhythmic sound of helicopter propellers. They squinted up and spotted four of the vehicles hovering overhead.

The wyvern threw its head back and roared at the strange things buzzing annoyingly above. They weren't gryphons or rocs. They smelled of metal and men. The knightess that had murdered its master was frail. Her courage had been sapped and she was no longer the great adversary it had feared. There was no rush to kill her now.

Breathing a stream of writhing fire into the air, the wyvern attacked the helicopters.

"Idiots! I have to put you down!" the black angel said, diving toward the building. "It's not safe here, but you need to protect Risa and I don't have time to move you both and rescue those morons."

Once again she was left on the rooftop. Risa had just come to her feet and stumbled over to Imbri.

"I…I don't think I want to be a knightess anymore."

They looked at each other for a moment longer and then the brown-haired one gave an apologetic smile. "I don't think I ever wanted to be one either. Come on. We have to get down from here and find saf—"

An ear-splitting roar drowned out her next words. The wyvern swooped down from the night, tail whiplashing in an arc directed at the two girls. Imbri pushed Risa aside to get her out of the way, but she tripped and landed flat on the ground.

The keen, razor-sharp barb came down straight at Risa. She saw the tail and her eyes widened. Using the lightning-quick reflexes of her present body, the twin managed to twist out of the way.

It buried into the cement not even a foot from her face and then the wyvern yanked it up again, sending a shower of broken stones and dust every which way. The cloud was so thick that she could see nothing, but as she lay there groping in the darkness, one hand came to her throat.

The necklace had broken! Fortunately the pendant was still there pressed against her skin.

Risa understood the severity of the broken chain and grasped the necklace in her hand. But worrying about the pendant distracted her from everything else. The wyvern's tail swept back, striking her with the length rather than the barb.

It threw her forcefully across the rooftop and she rolled over the edge.

Imbri saw her friend go flying and darted forward, heedless of the danger. Risa had caught a handhold but she was unable to use both hands because of the precious necklace. The knightess realized her friend's peril and called out, "Don't let go of it! I'll pull you up."

Leaning over, she gripped Risa's wrist. Her hands were slippery because of blood and her muscles screamed, but she refused to give up. Yet even pulling with all her might she was losing her hold.

"I need your other hand!"

Impulsively Risa put the necklace in her mouth and swung her free hand up. Imbri caught it and braced herself to pull. The sound of leathery wings slicing through the air reached their ears. Both of them turned their heads left and gasped.

The wyvern's silver eyes glowed with malice as it dove with fatal purpose toward them. Hawk-like talons stretching out and smoke leaking between its dagger-length crystalline teeth, the beast came barreling down.

Staring at the creature black as pitch that absorbed rather than reflected light, Risa suddenly realized how snakes were able to immobilize their prey. Its silver eyes caught and held her gaze, drawing her through a doorway where a hideous secret lurked. The instant lengthened into an hour of molten torture.

Imbri's hands tightened on Risa's as the girl made the mistake of looking directly into the wyvern's eyes. Every muscle went tense and she was unable to move. She did the only thing she could do, frozen as she was: she screamed.

As her mouth opened and Risa shrieked helplessly, the pendant of a silver pegasus in flight slipped from her teeth. A flash of burning red light exploded with the separation of Imbri's body and her emblem.

Risa's scream broke off, her eyes bulging as a deeper pain from the innermost reaches of her body enveloped her.

Imbri herself let out a heart wrenching cry as the light seared her eyes.

Surprised by the flash, the wyvern banked, narrowly missing the knightess' head with its talons.

Despite the loss of the necklace, Imbri managed to heave her friend up onto the roof. Risa's hands clawed at her throat while she uttered choking gasps and cries. Her expression revealed much more pain than she'd ever dealt with in her life.

"What happened? I could see that flash two blocks down."

Dark was beside them but he needed no explanation once he got a good look at the twin where she convulsed on the ground.

Imbri stared. There was nothing she could do. The pain and burden should be hers alone, not the curse of an innocent child whose life had been stolen away! She never had a choice. The arrow refused to break and now the _andora_ was nothing more than a staff. She could do nothing at all to help. Could she?

She could do something. She _would!_ Pure determination flared within her heart. Scrambling to her feet, Imbri hurried to the spot where she'd dropped the Archer's Secret and what remained of her ancient weapon. Dark followed.

"What are you doing? We need to help Risa now! Where did the necklace fall? If we return it to her she'll be all right, won't she? Imbri?"

He flinched as she abruptly stood and turned on him. The hardness in her eyes was astonishing, but moreso were her next words: "I need a bow. Now!"

Confused, he obeyed nevertheless. A bow appeared of dark energy that shifted and swirled with deep violet and black. He gave it to her and as she held it, a tingle went through her hands that whispered along her fingers. A ghostly strand connected the ends where she fitted the arrow expertly.

Her arm drew back, the injured hand bracing the bow steadily as if there was no pain at all. The monster had spotted them as it flew and inhaled to use its most deadly weapon. Imbri also inhaled and caught the comfortingly familiar scent of nightshade.

"For you and you alone," she murmured too low to be heard.

It was within range now. Imbri gazed upward, warrior's wrath running through her veins. Her fingers released the arrow, letting it sail smoothly through the air toward the beast whose mouth had begun to spew fire. Gold and silver beams streamed in the projectile's wake, searing a clear path through the inferno until it entered the gaping jaws of the beast hovering above.

The wyvern let out a fearsome cry that woke the remainder of the city that had continued to sleep.

The creature fell from the sky, gasping and coughing as blood poured from its mouth. The scales down its neck and back were already stained, as though red oil leaked along its body. It landed with an earthshaking crash on a building and crashed through the top floor. Blood dripped in ghastly crimson streams as it tried to raise itself from the cement indention. One of its clawed feet scrabbled uselessly at the stone.

It had no strength left. With one final heave, the beast breathed its last and was still.

Dark felt Imbri sag against him. The bow dissipated in her hands as he caught her in a faint. Staring worriedly into her blank face, the angel wondered what had happened.

"Dark…" a weak voice croaked nearby.

He turned his head to see Risa rising to her knees. She fell back with a grunt, but stubbornly refused to lie down. In a flash he knew she was no longer the Harada girl.

"Imbri! How did you—?"

"Broken… the arrow trapped us in each other's bodies. It has no power any longer." She stifled a gasp of pain and he knelt down.

"What can I do?"

"I need your help. Take me to the wyvern."

Wordlessly he half-carried her to the dead reptile and she touched its head, still leaking blood from the wound made by the Archer's Secret. Her hands felt about the base of one horn and found the amulet. Bringing it out, she whispered words that tapped into its hidden powers. A light roused in its depths and she looked at the creature lying dead before her.

"Take this one home. She was brave, a true warrior, and should not go unmourned."

The bauble shattered in her hands, its glowing fragments leaping away to cover the female wyvern like stardust. Once they had all settled on it, a brief flash of light seared their eyes… and then there was no longer a corpse on the rooftop.

Dark caught Imbri as she doubled over from pain. "It's getting worse," she choked out. She leaned heavily against Dark but her legs would no longer support her weight.

Sinking to the ground, she clutched her middle and couldn't stifle the ailing cry that escaped her lips. He knelt down with her, trying to think of any possible way he could ease her suffering or take away her pain.

Imbri was almost too weak to raise herself. Without the necklace her strength had fled. Her eyes fell on the _andora's _shaft only a few feet away. If she leaned forward she could reach it, except that Dark was between.

"Dark…" she whispered, her voice trembling, "I yearned for death my whole life. Now finally when my wish is to be granted I don't want it to take me! I don't want to fall into that deepest sleep!" She wept, reaching toward him with hardly any strength.

He took her into his arms, closing his eyes and trying to comfort her. She looked into his face. "You are the only one I have ever…"

She couldn't finish because of another wave of pain. As the blind whiteness left her vision, his mouth found hers and they kissed tenderly. Imbri wanted nothing more than to be in his arms forever. Dark tasted her tears as they trickled down her face and pulled her closer. The electricity from their touch warmed her body.

Imbri gazed imploringly up at him before a new wave of stronger pain wracked her body. He gripped her face so that she could do nothing but look at him. "Listen to me, I won't let you die! You—"

She lightly pressed a finger against his lips, silencing him, then wrapped her arms around him. He drew her close and could feel her trembling beneath his arms, whether from sadness or the pain he couldn't tell. She seemed so small and frail for the first time since he'd known her… so vulnerable that it frightened him.

Once again their lips found each other and this time there was a ravenous hunger behind the kiss. Imbri breathed heavily as she pressed herself against Dark and the Phantom Thief drew her in as close as they could possibly be. They kissed to the rhythm of their deep breaths, trying desperately to get closer although there was no longer space between them.

The rising pain and lack of strength forced Imbri to break off the drawn-out kiss. Her head sagged against Dark's chest and he smoothed down her hair.

"Dark…"

A new flash of crimson light woke Dark from his thoughts centered around Imbri. She had reached behind him and united the _andora_ with its missing piece! The weapon glowed blood-red for a moment before changing to white and dissolving into scattered fragments of light. They floated about like diamond fireflies, casting a hazy shifting light over the couple.

Dark could see the pain vanish from her eyes at once. But she only seemed to get weaker.

"Imbri?"

She gazed up at him, unspoken gratitude overflowing with tears, but also laced with sadness.

"Imbri, what—_why? _You knew it would kill you!"

Her body had begun to fade. He hugged her tight, but already there was something intangible about her.

"I'll never let you go!"

The color washed out of her clothing, leaving her in shades of white and ash gray. Her sundarkened skin paled until he could see through it. One final tear glistened on her cheek, a drop of quartz. She was nothing more than a ghostly figure now and he could no longer touch her.

"Imbri? Say something please, Imbri!"

She had vanished into the air. The dancing starlights were gone too.

(X)

A figure dressed in white stared numbly at what had once been an apartment's roof. Hatred and false love for the young woman swirled about inside him until he couldn't distinguish one feeling from the other.

Watching Dark embrace her was almost more than he could bear. As Imbri suddenly went limp in his arms and disappeared, Krad nearly flew over, but somehow he managed to restrain himself.

Despite the truth laid bare before him and realizing how easily he'd been tricked, the angel could not help feeling an emptiness there in his chest. He'd never been more happy than those precious minutes they kissed together. Nothing had ever felt more sincere and pure to him.

It was all a lie.

But then…why could he not dismiss it entirely?


	15. Imbri

**If you thought 14 was the last chapter, I'm happy to say you're wrong. I'm not sure how happy you'll be when you reach the end of this one though…**

**Chapter 15: Imbri**

_In the moonlight I felt your heart_

_Quiver like a bowstring's pulse_

_In the moon's mere light you looked at me_

_Nobody knows your heart._

_When the sun has gone I see you_

_Beautiful and haunting but cold_

_Like the blade of a knife, so sharp so sweet_

_Nobody knows your heart._

_All of your sorrow, grief, and pain_

_Locked away in the forests of the night_

_Your secret heart belongs to the world_

_Of the things that sigh in the dark_

_All the things that cry in the dark._

song from _Princess Mononoke _

Pain was the first feeling she became aware of. It felt as though someone had ripped rough sandpaper over the palm of her left hand and then tenderized it with a fork. Risa opened her eyes and blinked several times to clear the blurriness from them.

That was her ceiling with its flowery print. At least she was home. Painfully she raised her hand and saw bandages wrapped around it, the edges tainted with dried blood.

A distressed face appeared above her. "Are you Risa or Imbri?"

"R-Riku? What happened?"

The older twin recognized her sister's distinctive tenor and embraced her with a sob, tears flowing freely down her face. "I was so worried! You've been asleep ever since the police found you a few hours ago. Why didn't you tell me you were going to that belltower?"

"I didn't have much choice. Where's Imbri?" Risa wondered.

"I don't know. They didn't find her or Dark. You were all alone."

Brief silence followed, during which the younger twin's hand rose to touch the base of her throat almost fearfully. "The necklace broke… I've never felt anything like that before. I thought I was being torn to pieces! How did she put me back in my body? What's happening to her? Do you think she's all right?"

"Dark's with her so I'm sure she's fine… though I hate to admit it." The auburn-haired girl shook her head and tucked the covers around her sibling in a motherly fashion. "There's time enough to tell me about your adventure later. You'd better get some sleep. You're going to school in the morning. Even after a night like this I doubt you can shrimp out of it again. It's late. Good night, Sis."

Risa waited a few minutes after Riku left before getting up. Every muscle in her body was sore and she wondered exactly what Imbri had been doing. As she passed by the desk, her hand accidentally brushed against her deck of Tarot cards. They fell to the floor, a few fluttering to land face-up.

Dropping to her knees to collect them, Risa realized she was looking at the same cards she'd seen days earlier.

"'Losing herself to a friend'… I suppose that would be the two of us switching places. 'A gift of death and a curse of adoration combining'… could that be her _andora?_ But combined with what?" Her eye fell on a new pair of cards. "'Darkness that consumes.'"

Feeling her skin turn cold, Risa hurriedly left the room and made her way onto the balcony. A midnight breeze sent shivers down her body, but the teenager didn't go back inside for her jacket.

She tried to remember. Memories of the rooftop battle were only scattered flashes so full of shadows and fire that she could hardly make sense of them.

One scene she did manage to glean was calm, though. She had opened her eyes briefly and saw Dark embracing Imbri. A delicate rose hung from the knightess' fingers. She could see the desperate love they shared in a passionate kiss. It was a tender, comforting memory and strangely Risa herself had felt no jealousy at the sight. Only relief and gladness.

Risa's ears didn't catch a sound, but suddenly she was acutely aware of no longer being alone. Her eyes swung toward a corner of the balcony. A deeper shadow was there.

"Dark?" she ventured.

"I'm here."

His grief was almost tangible. She didn't approach him but stood where she was, hands clasped together urgently. "Dark, where is she? You got the necklace back in time, didn't you?"

There was no reply.

"For the love of God, _tell me!_"

His guilty silence answered her question all too thoroughly.

"No! She can't be—" Risa gasped, leaning heavily against the railing as her strength wavered. "But I saw you both! I saw you kiss her! I thought you saved her life."

"I couldn't."

His reply was so soft that she almost didn't hear it. She still couldn't make out his obscure face, but there was unmistakable pain behind the words.

"I kn… I know what she meant to you, Dark. The first time I opened my eyes in her body I saw the look on your face. You truly loved her, didn't you?"

"My only wish now is that I hadn't." The dark-winged angel held out something. "I know you had a special connection to her. I think she would have wanted you to keep this."

Trembling, Risa took what he offered with her uninjured hand. It was the emblem. She cradled the silver pegasus there, finally letting the dam behind her eyes break.

Through her tears, she knew she was alone once more.

(X)

His flight veered without conscious thought, aimless and drifting.

At last, when his strength reached its limit and he was forced to land, Dark immediately withdrew into himself, leaving Daisuke stranded on the far side of Azumano. Wiz gave a tired "Kyuu" and sagged on his shoulder, no longer able to retain his winged form. The redhead braced himself against a railing that overlooked the river and eventually stumbled to a pay phone. Someone picked up on the fourth ring.

"Hello? Hello? Who's calling?" a gruff, elderly voice asked.

"Grampa, I need a ride."

"What! Your legs aren't good enough?" the old man snorted.

"I'm serious. I've never felt this weak before. Could you ask Mom to come get me?"

"Why don't you ever ask me?"

The Tamer sighed wearily, clearly not in the mood for arguing. "Could you just ask her?"

"I'm sorry Daisuke but she can't. The car's missing. Kosuke took it out hours ago and hasn't come back yet. I'll let him know you need a ride when he gets in."

"This is a nightmare," he exhaled with an obvious lack of vigor. "But somehow I just don't care right now. Night Grampa."

Daisuke hung up, too tired to feel anything more than fatigue. He was sure that annoyance, anger, frustration and the rest of the package would catch up with him later, but all he could think about was how benches became surprisingly soft at night.

A pair of headlights blinded him where he lay. Content with his solitude, the teenager almost used profanity when he heard the car door open, but Kosuke's voice stopped him.

"It's about time Dark let you take over. Come on, Daisuke. You and Wiz must be completely exhausted."

As his father helped him and the white rabbit into the car, Daisuke couldn't help wondering how convenient it was that he had been found so quickly. "How did you know where I was?"

"Not exactly sure. I got a feeling a few hours ago that I would need to go looking for you tonight. Strange, but I just knew I'd find you sooner or later."

"I'm just glad you found us. Dark isn't exactly the most obliging person in the world when he's occupied." The redhead leaned back in the seat as they drove down winding streets toward home.

After a few minutes Kosuke cleared his throat. "If it's not too nosy, how did his love affair go?"

"You know about that too?"

The older man chuckled as though his son had made a joke. "Dark has always spent careful time choosing which outfit to wear. Over the past two weeks he simply grabbed one at random without concern. His vanity took a backseat to something and I'm convinced it could only be love. I'm also quite sure the one he's infatuated with is that 'Imbri' you told us about. Am I right?"

"As usual." Daisuke couldn't help being amazed at Kosuke's uncanny ability to weasel things out on his own with so little information.

"What happened to her?"

"…I'm not sure. She's gone. I know that much." He dropped his head, burnt out and now depressed.

"Did she return to her world?"

"No. Her curse was broken the only way it could break… by dying."

"I see. Have you tried talking to Dark since?"

"It's like a blank wall. I can hardly feel him at all, and what I do feel makes me afraid for him." Another moment of silence passed before Daisuke threw out, "It doesn't make any sense! Her _andora_ was supposed to grant her deepest desire and she said she loved Dark! I don't understand why she just vanished into the air. It shouldn't have happened that way!"

Kosuke parked in front of their home but he appeared to be deep in thought. "Her deepest desire… Dark… I wonder—" Suddenly he reached over and tapped smartly on Daisuke's head.

"Hey!"

"I just need to say something to Dark. I hope he's listening because it's very important." He stared into Daisuke's soft scarlet eyes, trying to reach out to the Thief. "Dark, desires are curious things. What we think we desire often turns out to be much different from our true desire. Don't give up. Not yet. It isn't anywhere close to over."

Daisuke closed his eyes, but a moment later shook his head slowly. "Nothing. I don't know if he heard you or not, Dad."

Kosuke got out of the vehicle and then went around to assist his fatigued son. "I doubt it's possible for Dark to sever his connection with you on his own, but tonight is critical all the same. I hope he comes to terms with this in some way. If he doesn't, it's very possible he won't be the same Dark you've become friends with."

"Kyuuu…" Wiz agreed in a sad voice from Daisuke's arms. Even Dark's rabbit Familiar was concerned.

The teenager looked down at the animal then back up at his father. "What can I do? I'm no good with words and even if I was I can't talk to him if he blocks me out."

"We'll just have to wait and pray he receives his desire before it's too late. That's all we _can_ do."

They went inside the house, the Tamer worried. Minutes later his whole family sat around the kitchen table listening to the story and soon they were all somber as well. They looked at each other helplessly and said nothing.

(X)

It was an eclipsed night that put shadows to shame. Pillars pale and cold as ice lined a desolate hall, giving off faint luminosity that emphasized the forbidding darkness rather than pierced it. Tall sharp-edged windows were cut into the walls, like gaping wounds to reveal the endless night. Stars pinpricked the sky but so faint and distant that they might as well have not been there at all.

Dark stood at one of those casements, surveying the emptiness of his world with despair. He moved slowly past the other windows, each with the same bleak view. Every step echoed hollowly in the hall as if to accentuate his solitary existence.

Voices from far away almost reached him but he pushed them away, refusing to listen as the world around him grew darker and darker.

A single doorway opened out into a courtyard. Flowers of dark indigo, deep violet, and crystalline black filled the beds of earth. Nothing about them was delicate or gentle. Theirs was a dangerous, immortal beauty. Like him, they were trapped in a timeless world where nothing grew or died. A ceaseless life that could hardly be called life.

Wings trailing in the grass, Dark came to stand in the center of the courtyard. The angel's eyes slid shut. There was an air of finality, as though some forbidden act were about to be committed. The world paused, perhaps waiting to end.

"It's beautiful!"

The feminine voice chimed in the constricting darkness, dispelling the despair that had clouded it a moment before. Dark turned in surprise.

"Did you create this courtyard or is it one of your memories?"

There was Imbri, not dressed in modern clothes or her leather armor, but a delicate black velvet gown that flowed along her form like water, rippling without a breeze to touch it. Gone were the bruises and blood he remembered marring her features.

She was perfect.

"I think it's sweet that this is the way you see me in your mind, Dark." Girlishly she lifted a corner of her dress and twirled before him, brown eyes filled with gentle happiness and glossy black hair sweeping after.

"You're— I saw you die!"

Imbri shook her head, a secretive smile on her lips. "No, you saw my body disappear. My _andora _understood my desire better than I did. It knew that if I was to become an ordinary girl then I could never be with you. I had to become ethereal, like you."

Dark started forward but stopped himself. "No. I can't let you. This world… sunlight has never touched it. I live in endless shadows without any hope. You can't join me here."

Her soft fingers touched his arm. The black angel looked down at her and saw the innocent honesty in her gaze.

"The day I inherited my _andora_ I've been living in a darkening twilight. I believe it knew one day I would be here and was preparing me to be with you. Listen: my curse changed me. I'm no longer fully human and it's doubtful I ever will be. Your curse changed you too: you are no longer fully spirit. We are equal. I may be in my sixteen year-old body but I am in no way naive. I know what I'm doing, and for the first time since I can remember… I know where I'm supposed to be."

He faced her, placing his hands on her shoulders. "How can I do this to you? Even if you're willing, I don't know how I can let you become a part of my world. Once you truly enter it you can never go back."

Her demeanor changed and she seemed to withdraw, becoming a stranger with hidden emotions.

"Dark… that day you told me you never liked me… that hurt worse than all the pain I felt when I was separated from my emblem. If you can say the same to me here and now, I'll leave and you will never need to worry about me again."

The Phantom Thief stared at her, knowing the truth would possibly lead to a more cruel fate, but his resolve crumbled to dust when he looked directly into her deep umber eyes.

"I don't like you, Knightess Imbri. I _love_ you."

The dreadful ambiance emanating from Imbri changed instantly into a flood of joy as she flew into his arms, weeping. "I never thought I would hear those words from you! Don't ever let me go, Dark!"

"It's a promise," he whispered into her ear, holding her tightly.

One strong hand stroked hair that smelled faintly of nightshade now. Already she was melding with his world. Feathers brushed against her cheek and the dark-haired young woman nestled into them, realizing she'd found her home at last.

"Dark, will you take me flying?"

"I'll give you your own pair of wings." He smiled at her. "This is my realm after all."

Taking the former knightess into his arms, Dark kissed her lovingly. Moonlight broke out of the sky, softening the harsh edges and sharpness of the garden where they embraced.

(X)

Daisuke shot up with a gasp, knocking his chair over. "Dark! Where—?!"

_Don't worry, kid. I'm not going anywhere. You can't really get rid of me that easily anyway. It's strange but even though my connection to you is much weaker, I feel stronger._

Daisuke breathed a sigh of relief. "It really felt like you were disappearing. What changed all of a sudden?"

Dark's voice was silent for more than a minute before he finally replied in almost wonder:

_The eclipse is over._

**The story is finally complete. (sniffle) I swear there's just something in my eye! Stay tuned for the Thank You chapter. If you want to tell me one more thing about yourself before it's too late, better do it now.**


	16. Finale

**I know very well that this chapter goes against fanfic-dot-net's rules, but I think my reviewers are worth the risk. **

**Also, I would like the 80+ people who haven't even touched that little "review" button down there to do it today. I KNOW you read my story! This is the last time I'll update on this and I'd like to hear from y'all just once. Just tell me if you even liked it, kay? I wrote it, so couldn't you at least bother to review at the end? _Pretty please?_**

**Last Chapter: Finale**

The Harada mansion stood overlooking the darkened ocean, but there was nothing lonely or somber about the place this night. Every room was lit and filled with people. Colored lanterns lighted the garden where people stood around talking. Their chatter and laughter echoed and melted together into a din that rose and fell with the music's volume.

Up in the highest room, a young girl with lanky brown hair pulled back into a messy ponytail sat at a desk littered with loose-leaf papers. Empty cans of black cherry soda lay scattered about so that a person could hardly walk without tripping. The girl chewed nervously on her fingernails and yanked out her hair as she wrote wildly in a red notebook full of ink smudges, cross-outs, and food stains.

"Gotta get this done before—"

A loud knock at the door jerked her out of her intense contemplation and she nearly fell over backwards. Mr. Tsubouchi poked his head in and observed the carnage within.

"Miss Janika, I just cleaned this room a few hours ago. How did you manage to drink dozens of sodas since then?"

"By sheer force of will," she told him darkly as she stood up.

Mr. Tsubouchi nodded. "Soda cans aside, I came to inform you that the guests have assembled."

"All of them? _Already?!_ I thought they weren't supposed to be here until nine."

"It's nine-thirty, Madam."

"Shoot! I'm not even dressed. Well, it's about time I used my Author Power."

She closed her eyes and clapped her hands together (Alchemist-style!). Suddenly her hair was curled into dangling ringlets and she was in a dazzling red evening gown that trailed along behind her, complete with gold jewelry and high-heels that were killing her feet before she'd even taken a step.

"It's gonna take me forever to get down there!" she whimpered.

Downstairs in the main hall everyone was waiting in anticipation for The Author. None of them had ever seen her before and this would be her first appearance in this fanfic!

Imbri stood near the snack table. She was a bit transparent, but she appeared to be solid enough to eat the food. Takeshi meandered over and whispered something coyly to her, but instead of punching him the way she usually would have, she merely smiled and pointed behind him…to where Dark was glowering at the kid and cracking his knuckles.

No one paid attention as Takeshi Saehara suddenly learned what it was like to fly without wings. He slid to a stop in front of a girl with a shirt that had a picture of a giant yellow chicken and said "I Love Chocobos". Audra Kaiba also had a shadow following her, murmuring snide comments. The girl finally shouted, "Shut up, Kaia!" and stepped over Takeshi's limp body as she went to refill her cup with punch.

Risa was in charge of refilling glasses at a nearby table and ladled out some for her then turned back to a girl snitching peanuts. "Are you absolutely sure? I don't think he's even seen me yet."

"Are you kidding me?" Volume-5 demanded with an Australian accent as she swirled some lime sherbet around in her punch. "That mate's been eyeballing you ever since he got here. You should go talk to him. What's the worst that could happen?"

They were disrupted by a loud whinny and the front doors burst wide open to admit two girls riding on a chestnut-colored horse. "Last-minute reviewers coming through!" one girl shouted as the steed slid to a slippery halt on the polished tiled floor. They barely avoided crashing into a group of people. The one that had called out the warning slipped off shakily. Blue flowers hung from every braid and pocket she possessed.

The other passenger dismounted by flapping a pair of computerized silver wings and landing lightly on her feet. "Thanks for the ride."

"Don't mention it," the horse shrugged as she rose to stand on two legs. She turned her attention to the girls she'd nearly bowled over. "Sorry about that. Do you know who those goons outside are? They're all faceless and gray and tried to keep us from getting in."

One guest with a crown on her head and a pair of lustrous wings answered, not at all disturbed by the fact that she was being addressed by a talking equine. "I had to fight my way through them too. They're all the people who read The Story but never reviewed. It's a wonder they were invited to the party at all, but The Author wanted them to come anyway. She sure is generous. Oh, I'm AngelQueen77, by the way."

"Sorell," the horse nodded politely.

The girl covered with blossoms indicated them and said, "BlueLilac."

"And I'm Seraph-reload." The passenger ruffled her own wings self-consciously. She glanced at the second girl who had deep red roses trailing in her hair. "Um…is it just my imagination or do your roses have feathers on them?"

The girl beamed and tossed her hair so that the newcomers could see that each rose had a pair of flitting wings attached. "Of course! The name's Angelic Roses. It's funny how many of us have such heavenly nom de plumes."

Nearby was a second group who would look very strange in a normal setting, but here they hardly passed for average. Struggling Artist was a fidgety girl with a chewed pencil behind each ear and a notebook in her hands that looked as if a pit-bull had taken its teeth to it.

"Look, look!" she thrust the ragged book forward at her companions. "180 pages and not a single good fight scene. (sigh…) I guess if I stick to drama no one will notice. What do you think?"

D. Blade wrung her hands and occasionally gripped a pair of daggers at her belt or the hilt of an incredibly large broadsword on her back that looked suspiciously like something that belonged to a spiky-haired blonde guy in some famous game... She seemed more twitchy than Struggling Artist.

"The Story…it's over—over forever! What _now?! _I have nothing left to live for!"

"You'll just have to cope like the rest of us, yeah," BlackSnowPetals glanced at her. Everything about her was dark from the beads strung on black strands of hair down to the gypsy sandals on her feet. "Maybe you should get a hobby, yeah?"

"Like what?" the ill-natured D. Blade lashed out sarcastically. "I doubt I'd be interested in collecting _cobras_."

The Gothic teenager drew back with wide eyes. "How did you know about that?!"

"Why doesn't anyone ever answer my questions?" Struggling Artist broke in, waving her forgotten notebook in front of their noses.

A bird flaming with dark fire soared over their heads, making them duck instinctively. It flared its wings and hovered just above two people on the far side of the room. They reached up and took the glasses of punch held delicately in its claws.

"_Mae govannen!_" Manwathiel greeted the mythical creature in Elvish. Pointed ears peeped out of her fair hair and she was dressed in a blue gown of timeless fashion. "My thanks, Phoenix."

"Mine too," a figure resembling the Grim Reaper said.

Hiei's-Dark-Little-Phoenix shuddered as she perched on a bar set up for her use. "Do you have to wear that thing? You really do look like you came to this party to take someone's soul."

Pulling back the hood so that the others could see her face, DaRkSxXWiiFEyYX3 folded her arms crossly. "I _like_ it. It's my version of the Fallen Knight's Cloak."

"But Wifey, I thought that was supposed to be some shabby piece of cloth."

"Picky picky! I can't even review without getting an earful."

Manwathiel's jaw dropped and an expression of amazement came over her features. "Am I the only one who can see that?"

They glanced at a window where Wiz was sipping punch from a bowl and kyuuing to a lizard with wings. The wyvern had been chibi-fied! She was his size and much cuter than before, with an overly large head, big silver eyes, and wings so small that they didn't look big enough to be useful. She was leaning up against Wiz's side and occasionally rubbing her head beneath his chin with affection.

"Hey, didn't that thing die?" Phoenix wondered.

A few feet away Krad smirked. "Did you really think The Author would kill the coolest creature in her fanfic?"

"Not you!" the fiery bird hissed from her perch and arched her wings to show her distaste. "Pseudo-bishi!"

The white angel ignored her, however. "Don't you remember what Imbri implied in chapter 3, that wyverns have special magic in their blood? They can change size too. Technically she's not evil either; just vengeful. Looks like there's some budding romance over there. Scary, if you think about it."

"Or 'dirty', as The Author's sister would say," Wifey muttered.

"_That_ girl? Ha! She thinks all Anime is dirty, and yet she really likes our show and our Manga. The Author says she just pretends to hate it so that her friends don't make fun of her and—"

"Sshhh!" Kosuke said, barging into their conversation. "Don't talk so loud. That's her right over there."

"Where? There?"

They all turned to look at a stunningly elegant girl with long brown hair, green eyes, and a sword at her side. She looked exceptionally elf-like and Manwathiel cheerfully wandered over to greet her.

"No, silly! That's Lyokolady," the man chastised. "The Author's sister is over _there_."

They saw a girl with short, wavy, sandy-blonde hair standing coolly off to one side, looking entirely unimpressed by everything and everyone around her. Mariah heaved a deep sigh and pursed her lips as she caught sight of the time.

"If she's not down here in two minutes, I'm _so_ gone! I can't believe she dragged me to this lame party. Where's the beer?"

"Aren't you underage?" a girl beside her asked, sipping a wine cooler.

"What's it to you, Avia?"

The tall dark-haired person sighed and picked up an iced glass. "Your sister asked me to keep you out of trouble. I'm not sure why I agreed. Here's a virgin margarita."

"I hate you. Oh, hold it…"

Mariah leaned casually against the wall as a man carrying drinks passed, and then her foot shot out to trip the guy. The successful prank resulted in a mess that spilt all over Takeshi.

"Maybe these kind of parties aren't so bad," the blonde girl laughed evilly.

Avia Jenith seemed to consider whether any injury done to him constituted as "trouble" and decided it didn't. Raising her glass, she made a silent toast and downed it. She overheard two girls gossiping a few feet away and looked over curiously.

"Did you noticed how many male reviewers she had?" Lilchinkkviet asked her friend. A wide brown kimono draped her frame, sleeves falling well past her waist.

"I think we might have all been girls," Skavnema shrugged, her rainbow-hued hair shimmering slightly at the movement. "It is DNAngel, after all. Well…actually, I think there was one or two…"

"You mean _him?!_"

The identity of the unnamed male seemed to stun them and both girls swayed on their feet as if they had been drinking something stronger than cherry coke. Dreamy expressions flitted across their faces and they sighed wistfully as one.

Suddenly Skavnema's eyes came back into focus. "Wait, I think I see a guy!"

They practically tripped over each other trying to reach a young man who appeared to be very nervous in the setting. His shaggy brown hair waved about as he was nearly tackled into the snack table. One or both of the girls had probably tried out as quarterbacks.

"Are you—are you—are you—?!" Lilchinkkviet stammered, trying to get a look at his face.

"The Bringer of Good Cheer," he introduced himself warily as he stood back up.

The two girls deflated a little. "It's not him. But this guy is cute." They brightened. "Need anything?"

"Ummm…I'm not familiar with the DNAngel show or Manga but I read The Story anyway. Could you do me a favor and explain a few things. She left some things out and it was a bit confusing at times."

Lilchinkkviet sighed, "Such loyalty to The Author…"

"I think that's so sweet!" Skavnema leaned forward so close that her rainbow hair tickled his nose. "Ask _me_ first."

"Hey!" the other girl nudged closer.

Bringer got off lucky. Not too far away, Daisuke was cornered by approximately five girls with no escape route in sight. Cici Linne wore a T-shirt that shouted "#1 Fan!" and held out a flowery pink pen and pad to get his autograph while next to her, Runeleska was dressed in strange clothes with foreign symbols all over them (probably of Aeledrian origin) and attempting to take his shirt as a souvenir. Rikai-Chan slid behind him, showing off her neon green fingernails, then murmured something Japanese into his ear that made him turn as red as his hair. Animejunkie828 kept snapping pictures of him from every imaginable angle but PurpleSkye (violet from eyebrows to toenails) merely drooled all over his chest.

Desperate, the Tamer pointed randomly at the ceiling and yelled, "Look, a comet!"

The fangirls' eyes left him for a split second and he vanished. Ducking beneath tables, chairs, and carts carrying filthy plates to the kitchen Daisuke made his way to Riku.

"Real smooth," his girlfriend laughed as he hunkered behind her and whimpered, "but I don't think that'll work for long. Oh, here they come already. Don't worry. I'll distract them." As the drove of girls came swarming toward her, Riku absentmindedly 'happened' to look leftward. "Oh, what do you know? Satoshi is over there with my sister."

Every eye riveted left to catch Risa smiling and chatting with Satoshi Hiwatari. When it registered in their minds that he was enjoying the conversation, all five Reviewers began to seethe and growl before mincing toward the ill-suited couple, intent on destruction and seduction, respectively.

On the other side of the room, Towa was pouting. She stood, arms folded stubbornly over her breasts (which were about ready to pop out of her uniform) and glared at anyone who looked her way. Occasionally she would mutter something along the lines of, "The Author didn't even give the readers a glimpse of me! How do you think Dark found the _andora_ when it got lost!?"

Everyone kept their distance. That is, with the exception of a young teenage boy who wasn't aware of who she was. He waltzed up to her cockily despite the grape juice stains on his shirt.

"Oh, you must be The Author's grandmother. I heard she had a relative hanging around here somepla—"

Towa vanished in a puff of purple smoke and Takeshi wondered what happened. Before he had a chance to flee, a tiny pink bird with a high-pitched voice, foul temper and hard beak started attacking him with a vengeance!

And a shy newcomer skirted the edges of the room, peering at people through wine glasses and laughing at the conversations she overheard. As she happened to pass by a desk in the corner, the young girl suddenly flipped out.

"No freaking way! They have a writing utensil _right here!_ This is so awesome!" OMG-its-a-pen shrieked girlishly as she danced about. "Best party ever!"

"Thank you all for attending this gathering. And now," Tsubouchi called from the head of the stairway, "your hostess…"

A hush had come over the gathering and a drumroll started. Several people glanced over at Skavnema where she was imitating a drum by pummeling her throat. When she saw them staring, she stopped to growl and snap ferociously at them.

The lights dimmed and a figure appeared at the head of the stairway. Everyone gasped as The Author gracefully descended the red carpet, one hand trailing delicately along the banister. The lights returned to their original brilliancy and then the audience got a good look at her.

"She's a lot plainer than I thought she'd be," Takeshi grumped, disappointed.

"Hey! Ever heard the term 'beauty is only skin deep,' creep?" Riku demanded as she jabbed him in the stomach with her elbow.

"Silence everyone!" Tsubouchi called.

The Author smiled down at a group of faceless people peering in through the doors and windows but unable to enter. "Thank you so much for reading my fanfic. Since you didn't review I didn't get a chance to find out anything about you. But seriously, y'all really made me happy just by reading the story all the way through. Ahem, Tsubouchi."

"Now for the personal Thank Yous." The butler blew the dust off a parchment and unrolled it. "First, Roxie the Rose."

A young teenager stepped forward with hair the same light shade as a sunrose. She smiled shyly and shrugged.

"You read every single one of my fanfics from Janika's Arrival to this one and I am grateful for your support through it all. You always had some comment to make and kept pestering me during my extended break between Code Lyoko and DNAngel. You just need to work up the courage to sign up for fanfic-dot-net. My gift to you is the Rose of Eros. Be careful with that thing, by the way. You never know what might happen."

Roxie took the Rose of Eros and held the delicate metal flower in her hands as if it was the One Ring.

"Second, the Bringer of Good Cheer."

He came out of the crowd with lipstick on either cheek and quite an embarrassed expression.

"Like Roxie, you've been faithful ever since I started writing online and I'll never forget you. You just have to start writing something and keep going! I expect to read a fanfic within the next month OR ELSE! Oh, and here's my gift to you: Imbri's _andora_. I hope it inspires you to greater heights…but if you nick it I'm coming after you!"

Bringer took the weapon (apparently repaired from its final battle) and sagged beneath the sudden weight. But even as he struggled not to drop it on his feet, it grew light in his hands and he could carry it comfortably.

"Third, Lyokolady."

The girl who appeared similar to an elf made her way to the front and saluted The Author with her sword before swinging the weapon in an arc and sheathing it once more.

"We've helped each other with our separate stories, I know, and I think you deserve thanks for all the assistance you've given me both here and previously. Believe me when I say you helped a lot more than it seems. Imbri may never have come to life without your influence. In return, I wish to give you this: the Amulet. May it transport you to new dimensions where you can have your own adventures."

Lyokolady accepted it with a bow and tied it around her neck, momentarily admiring the round, white crystal. An amber light pulsed within as it attuned itself to her heartbeat.

"Fourth, Avia Jenith."

"A new acquaintance, but more than ready to lend a helping hand as well as point out spelling mistakes, plot holes, and the lack of description in more than one scene. I have to say your comments were the inspiration behind the happy ending. As a symbol of my gratitude, I present you with the Harmony of Souls. I'm sure you won't try to switch bodies with anyone so I'm trusting you with it. Oh, and thanks for keeping an eye on Mariah (the little rat…)."

The young woman took the instrument that shone in black ivory, more similar to an ancient lyre than a harp. A dim magical sheen emanated from it and Avia Jenith slapped someone's hand as they tried to touch the smooth surface. Mariah yelped in pain.

"And last but certainly not least, Dantheman7777!"

The audience of Reviewers and fanfic characters went mute, gaping openly as they tried to spot the elusive person who was more legend than fact. A tall figure detached from the shadows behind The Author. She was looking down below for him when he grabbed her around the waist, scaring her half-silly.

"Is that him?" VoldysXangel gasped. She stared out from beneath a hat that looked strangely witchy, especially with bat wings extending from the sides, and clasped her hands together. "I didn't even think he existed!"

"Isn't he like a celebrity or something? Whoa! He's cuter than Satoshi!" atm36 waved a fan made from thirty-six dollar bills to cool herself in the stifling atmosphere.

"Hey! Don't say that or The Author will get flamed! I'd rank him 9.9 out of 10, Satoshi being a 10," jfbj warned. She wore a shirt that said "Eat at Joe's" on the front while on the back it declared "Just Fry Big Joe."

"_I_ don't think there's anything that special about him," Takeshi grunted jealously. Then the three girls attacked.

Ignoring the chattering crowd below, Dan grinned at The Author. She looked about ready to punch him for scaring her, then started laughing. "Well, at least you showed up!"

"Me miss your big debut? Never! Do I get a present too?"

"That depends on whether you got me one. Did you?"

His panicked expression answered the question, but she gave him a good-natured shove and held out a box. Accepting it without any suspicion, he untied the ribbon and opened it. A bit confused, he pulled out a pair of what appeared to be odd handcuffs. Before he could figure it out, The Author snapped one of them on his wrist and one on her own. The strand between the two parts of the Snaring Chain vanished.

With a grin Dan muttered, "I should have known." He glanced down at the main floor, noting a pianist playing a classical tune. "Feel like dancing?"

"In these heels? Are you _kidding_ me?!"

"Who ever said you had to dance with shoes on?" He leaned closer, whispering, "You're The Author. Make it happen."

Flipping her hair back with one hand, she snapped her fingers with the other. Suddenly nobody was wearing shoes. The guests near Takeshi covered their noses and ran off retching. "I _told_ you guys not to touch the cheeseballs!" he called after them.

Dan bowed formally and extended his hand. "Would you do me the honor of this dance, Milady?"

"After you convinced me to take everyone's shoes off? You'd _better _dance with me! And don't forget, I'll never stop blaming you for getting me hooked on DNAngel."

"It's not like I didn't expect it. Just look at what happened to me!"

**I tried to include all 29 people who reviewed, but if you didn't like my take on you it's just b/c I had little to nothing to work with. Maybe next time you'll answer my questions, hmm?**

**Here are the answers to a few questions and several other things I thought people might like cleared up.  
**

That part w/ Krad and Imbri on the rooftop still gives me willies. — I apologize formally here for any nightmares caused by the scene in chapter 13. (I didn't like it either but it served its purpose)

Why did you have to make me cry at the end?! — Because I love happy endings. If it hadn't ended like that I'm sure I would have gotten flamed by irate reviewers rather than soaked by all your tears.

Why didn't Daisuke get a bigger part? The show's about him. — Yes, the show is about Daisuke. Unfortunately this is my fic. I make and break all the rules. I decided to focus on Imbri and Dark instead. Case closed.

What about his family? Except for Kosuke, they didn't even show up at all! —That's the way it goes. End of story.

Isn't it kinda weird about Daisuke having Dark AND a girl in his head? — Thankfully they are completely unaware of each other. Dark and Imbri are connected to each other, and even though he's connected to his Tamer, Imbri isn't. So unless he decides to say something, Dai may never even know she's there. Sweet, huh? Secret lovers!

Aren't you going to write a sequel or something? — Sadly, I cannot replicate the level of humor, drama, action, and suspense that I created here in another "thrilling" tale. In other words, I can't compete w/ myself w/o being disappointed. I think I'll save this idea for some future book.

Oh come on! What happens now? You can't end it like that! — Oh yes I can! They're going to live happily ever after…until the Black Wings are reconnected, at which time a magical foozle will conveniently appear that keeps Dark from being trapped inside the artifact. Instead it transports him to new dimension/spirit world with Imbri where they finally live happily ever after and probably have kids. The End.

**I love everyone! I'll miss y'all!**


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